Go Team Go
by Ultrawoman
Summary: Buffy Summers finally got her dream and is head cheerleader at Sunnydale High. Will the arrival of two new students in the form of step.siblings Faith and Spike make life better or worse for Buffy and her cheer squad?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N : Yes, I know, I didn't finish my other WIPs yet, and I was talking about starting writing for other fandoms (eg That 70s Show) which I will be doing in the future, however, this idea won't leave me alone. It demands to be written, and so it shall be. I really hope you like it, it'll be partially based on one of my fave movies 'Bring It On' and partially on another idea I had that got entwined with it in my head...**

**Title : Go Team Go**

**Rating : PG-13**

**Summary : All-Human Fic Buffy Summers finally got her dream and is head cheerleader at Sunnydale High. Will the arrival of two new students in the form of step-siblings Faith and Spike make life better or worse for Buffy and her cheer squad?**

**_Disclaimer : Characters based on those created by Joss Whedon for the TV series Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Storyline partially based on that of the movie Bring It On as written by Jessica Bendinger and directed by Peyton Reed._**

* * *

Chapter 1

"Oh God, I'm so nervous" Buffy admitted as her boyfriend pulled the car up outside Sunnydale High. It was the first day back, and her senior year, plus the momentous day when she hoped to become head cheerleader.

"You have nothing to be nervous about, Buffy" her boyfriend, Angel, assured her as he leant in to kiss her cheek, "Who else would they choose?"

"Anybody!" the blonde complained, "I just couldn't stand it if Glory or Harmony got it"

"They won't" Angel promised, gripping her hand in his, "They're nice girls but they don't compare to you. You're the best cheerleader this school ever had"

"That's sweet" Buffy smiled, leaning over and kissing him, "I just wish I didn't have to go it alone"

"I'm sorry, baby, but you know I have to be on campus today" he told her, letting go of her hand as she looked towards the school.

"Well, here I go" she exhaled as she opened the door and got out. She barely got the door closed before Angel had driven off but she just guessed he was in a hurry to get to college.

"I'm gonna be fine" Buffy said quietly to herself as she walked towards the building, hugging her books to her chest, "What could possible go wrong?"

As Angel's car pulled away another soon took it's place. The black DeSoto had darkened windows so it was impossible to see the people within, but their music could be heard all too easily - something heavy and punkish, that much was obvious.

After a moment the music was gone and the two front car doors opened. Out stepped a boy and a girl, both dressed in black, the female with dark tresses, the male with bleached blond, slicked back hair.

"So, this is Sunnydale High" he said in an English drawl.

"Guess so" his companion shrugged, "Man, this is gonna suck"

"Come on, pet" he smirked, slinging an arm around her shoulders as they walked towards the building, "Mightn't be so bad"

"Spike, the place doesn't even have a gymnastics team" the girl complained. Spike shook his head.

"Now, now Faithie, give ol' Sunnyhell High a chance. S'posed to be 'a fine institution'" he quoted from the introductory pamphlet his father had shoved up his nose a couple of days ago.

"Yeah" Faith laughed humourlessly, "but who wants to spend half their life in an institution?"

* * *

"Okay, can I have everybody's attention!" Cordelia demanded, clapping her hands until everyone was quiet. She was about to announce the new head cheerleader since she was moving away and would be at a new school in LA two days from now. One of the new seniors must take her place.

"All votes are in and as much fun as it'd be I'm not going to embarrass all you people who got just the one vote or none at all, so I'll just announce the winner" she smiled, "Meet your new Captain, gang - Buffy Summers"

The blond half-yelled, half-squealed with delight as her name was called. She was immediately up and at Cordy's side, promising to be the best head cheerleader the school had ever seen, barring her predecessor of course who was still present for her little speech.

Whilst some of the girls and boys seemed pleased she had won, like Willow and Xander, others were less thrilled. It was clear Glory thought she would get picked, or at least she really thought she should have been, and Harmony was of similar opinion.

"Well, now that's over with" Cordelia sighed, "There's nothing left for me to say except good luck for the future girls and boys, I think you're going to need it" she smiled as she walked away.

"She really thinks the squad will be lost without her?" Glory sneered, "I never liked her anyway"

"Liar!" Harmony shrieked, "You were shopping with her on the weekend, and you hugged her, told her how much you'd miss her"

"I was lying, hello!" her friend snapped and Buffy rolled her eyes as she called for some order.

"Look, guys, whatever happened under the rule of QueenC it's all over now" she grinned, "I'm Captain, and now we do things my way"

"Ooh, someone's loving their authority" Xander joked, "You gonna start bringing a whip to practices, Buff?"

"You wish" Buffy told him, giving him a shove in the shoulder and laughing as he pretended to crash to the floor, badly wounded. Willow made him sit up and be sensible as the new captain explained what she wanted to do with today's practise session.

As the girls and boys got to their feet and into formation, it became clear someone was missing.

"Does anybody know where Amy is?" Buffy asked with a frown and the cheerleaders all looked at each other. It seemed no-one had a clue, "Wills, could you go check the locker room maybe?"

"Sure thing" the red-head nodded as she jogged off towards the building.

Unfortunately she already had a feeling she knew where she would find her old friend Miss Madison and what she'd be doing. The pressures of school, lack of care from her recently divorced parents and various other factors had driven Amy to want to drink and smoke to excess. It had gotten progressively worse over summer break to the point where nobody had heard from her the past couple of weeks. Willow saw her come into school this morning in dark clothes and sunglasses, her head down. She hadn't stopped to say hi to anyone.

"Amy?" Willow called into the locker room, not entirely surprised when she found no-one there. She moved along to the girls bathroom and went inside. All the stalls said vacant but there was clearly someone in the one on the far left.

"Amy?" she tried, tapping on the door and pushing it open slightly, "Oh God" she gasped at the sight that met her eyes.

* * *

"It's that bad?" Buffy checked as she paced the kitchen with the cordless phone to her ear.

"Yeah" Willow agreed on the other end of the line, "according to her Mom, Amy's been staying out a lot and when she was home she was just locking herself in her room all day. Turns out it was too much like hard work to get drunk all the time anymore"

"But drugs, Will, I mean I can't believe it" Buffy shook her head, "Amy was always so, well... normal"

"She's still normal, she just needs help is all" Willow told the blonde, "She's checked into a place where she can get that, it'll be okay"

"That's good" Buffy nodded, "And the last thing I want to do is be all unfeeling-girl about this but... we're a cheerleader down, Will. We need a replacement and we need one fast"

"Buffy!" her mother called for her attention a she stood in the doorway pointing to her watch, an aggravated look on her face. Her daughter had been in the house just two hours and she'd spent most of that on the phone talking about cheerleading! It hadn't even occurred to her to look at the homework yet.

"Listen Will, I gotta go" Buffy sighed, "Thanks for the info"

The two girls rang off and Joyce came striding over, taking the phone from her daughters hand.

"I need to make one more call, Mom, really I do" Buffy told her but the phone was held away from her.

"First you need to do your homework, young lady" she pointed out, "I don't like that your grades suffer for the sake of waving your pom-poms, Buffy. Your priority should be your school work"

"My priority is my cheerleading, because it's what I do best" the blonde protested, "You know what it means to me"

"Of course, sweetheart, and I'm not asking you to give up your passion" her mother sighed, "But school isn't just cheerleading, your grades are important too if you want to get into a good college next year"

"I know" Buffy agreed grudgingly, "If I promise to do all my homework straight after can I please make one more call?" she asked with a hopeful smile.

"It's not just the homework, Buffy" Joyce shook her head, "It's not like you're taking very demanding subjects. We talked about you taking another science or language course but you didn't bother, and college is going to come as a big shock if you don't... "

"Okay, you win!" Buffy interrupted, "How about I take Advanced Bio, like we talked about? Is that okay?" she offered, hoping to be left alone after this. She loved her Mom, of course she did, but she was having a crisis right now!

"Okay" Joyce nodded, "Biology, good choice"

"Can I get the phone back now?" Buffy asked, almost begging, "Please?"

Her mother caved and handed it to her.

"One call, five minutes" she said a little less sternly than she should've. Since her husband, Hank, had left a few years ago, he'd found it very difficult to be angry or harsh with her little girl. She was all she had left really.

"Xander? It's Buffy" the blonde said into the phone, "I'm having a crisis and I need your help..." she began, explaining the problem of being one cheerleader down for a significant amount of time.

"Nationals are in February and Regionals are barely a month away, we need a replacement as soon as" she told him, "Any chance you can be there after school tomorrow for tryouts?"

"You need me Buff, I'm there" Xander assured her, "but you know Glory and Harmony are gonna find out and want their say too"

"I know" Buffy sighed, "but I figure if I have you and Wills there, at least we'll have a majority. Plus I'm captain, they can't over-rule me, right?"

"Right" her friend agreed, though knowing how bitchy the other blonde girls' could get, he didn't really like the idea of getting in the middle of an argument.

The two friends said goodbye and hung up. Since Joyce had now left the room, Buffy took the chance to quickly dial another number. It rang and rang for what felt like a million times before someone finally picked up.

"Angel?" she said hopefully but an unfamiliar voice replied.

"Angel's not here right now" he said, "Can I take a message?"

"Ask him to call Buffy, please" she told him, and though he agreed he would he sounded as if he were too drunk or stoned to do it.

"Buffy!" her mother called from the next room, "Five minutes is up!"

"I'm going!" her daughter called back as she put the phone on the counter and headed up the stairs to her room.

It was almost be a pleasure to concentrate on homework right now, take her mind off the fact she had to find a new cheerleader tomorrow out of the hopeful but undoubtedly useless candidates at Sunnydale High.

_To Be Continued...  
_


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N : Liking the positive feedback on this fic so far - let's hope it continues. It seems there are quite a few fans of the movie 'Bring It On' who also love the Spuffy. Hopefully this story will not disappoint you in the way it combines the two!  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 2

Buffy sat in study hall, not at all thrilled by the book on the desk in front of her. Advanced Bio, not exactly her favourite subject, but she had a good knowledge on it and her mother was determined for her to be some kind of genius, so she would do her best. In all honesty her Mom didn't ask much of her, and she was supportive of her cheerleading most of the time so long as it didn't interfere too much with homework and such.

With a sigh, Buffy opened the book and tried to focus her eyes on the page. Her mind constantly wandered to her cheerleading responsibilities. This afternoon she had to be at the gym with Willow, Xander, Glory, and Harmony, to pick out a replacement for Amy. The task was doubtless to be easier said than done and Buffy was dreading it.

She glanced up from her book that she really hadn't been reading anyway when the teacher, Miss Calendar, cleared her throat and called the classes attention. Beside her stood a typical bad boy, all black leather and bleached blond hair. He might've been hot if he weren't so stereotypical, Buffy thought, and if he wasn't giving the whole room an evil stare.

"Class, we have a new student" Miss Calendar told them, "This is William Thompson"

"It's Spike" the boy snapped and the teacher re-checked the paper in her hand.

"Oh, this says William" she said with a frown.

"That's just my name" he shrugged, "Or my father's attempt at humour, whichever you prefer" he rolled his eyes.

"Why don't you sit down, Spike" Miss Calendar told him with a pointed look, and a strange emphasis on his preferred handle. Buffy's eyes followed the leather-clad new boy til he reached the empty seat next to her.

"Loser" a boy in the next row said into a sneeze and Spike shot him a nasty look, giving him the finger for good measure as he got comfortable in his seat and made no move to get out a book or do any studying. Buffy couldn't believe how much he seemed not to care. She didn't realise how much she was staring till he looked right back at her and smirked.

"Enjoying the view, luv?" he asked her and she glanced away, trying not to blush.

"Maybe" she admitted, trying not to smile, "I'm Buffy" she introduced herself and he nodded.

"Spike" he told her, "as you may have heard" she nodded also before noticing his T-shirt.

"Is that your band?" she asked, thinking he looked like the type.

"The Sex Pistols?" he said incredulously, trying not to smirk too much, "No, luv, they're an English punk band from the 70s" he explained as her blush returned.

"Oh, well, that's... nice" she said wishing she'd never started this conversation. She attempted to go back to her book when he spoke again.

"Advanced Biology?" he read from the cover.

"Yeah" Buffy sighed, "Boredom city"

"Oh I dunno" Spike smirked, as she glanced up at him, "Book readin' might be a touch on the mind-numbing side, but practical study might be fun" he suggested, eyes wandering over her body.

The bell rang then and Buffy was quick to get to her feet.

"See you around, luv" Spike called behind her, but she didn't answer, just glanced briefly at him before she left the room.

* * *

"Bring on the retards" Glory huffed as she took her seat at the table in the gym.

"Why are we doing this?" Harmony groaned, "I so have better places I could be right now"

"We need a replacement for Amy" Buffy reminded them.

"Yeah but hello, so long as she stops taking drugs she can come back" the dumb blonde pointed out, flipping her hair over her shoulder.

"It's not that simple, Harmony" Willow told her in a quiet voice, "She needs help"

"Got that right" Glory sneered.

"Shut up, Glory!" Xander snapped.

"Bite me, Harris!" came the immature reply.

"Enough!" Buffy's louder voice interrupted the childish squabbling, "Amy is getting help but she could be out for months. Regionals are in four weeks, we need a replacement. So let's just do this, okay?" she suggested, as everyone settled in their seats and in came the girls that wanted to be Sunnydale High's latest Razorback cheerleader.

* * *

"Oh my God" Xander groaned letting his head drop onto the desk in front of him. The afternoon had dragged on as they saw ten different candidates to fill the empty cheerleading post, all of which were pretty dire.

First the girl who started over and over because it wasn't perfect yet, the next who thought if she showed enough flesh and did the splits enough times she'd definitely get in, and another who took 'be aggressive' to the extreme. These and several more equally disturbing displays had been seen and consequently rejected.

"This is hopeless" Buffy sighed, "we have to pick someone but..."

"They're all losers?" Harmony suggested, not at all helpfully.

"Maybe the second girl?" Willow tried to help, "I mean, I know she was a little... kinda slutty, but she might be okay..." her voice trailed off as the door slammed open and closed again and a brunette girl entered the gym. She wore all black with thick silver jewellery, and a tattoo banded round the top of her arm. Her bad attitude was obvious from the way she walked alone.

"What's this?" Glory asked, observing the new girl, "Biker chick or what?"

"Er, tattoos aren't allowed" Harmony told the girl, hoping to get rid of her.

The brunette put her finger to her mouth and licked it, before wiping a streak through her 'tattoo'.

"I got bored in fourth period" she shrugged.

"Er, you need to fill out a form..." Buffy began only to be interrupted by a piece of paper shoved in her face, "Oh, okay...Faith, right?" she checked and the girl nodded.

"That would be me"

"You wanna be a cheerleader?" Glory sniggered, "She probably just wants to see us in the locker room" she whispered none to subtly to Harmony who replied with an 'eeww' and a giggle.

"Well, let's see what you can do" Buffy suggested.

"Name it" Faith shrugged, knowing whatever they asked of her she could handle it. She was a hard core gymnast, a champion at her last school, as well as having a good knowledge of martial arts.

"Okay" Harmony smiled, "Front handspring, step out, rounded back handspring, step out, rounded back handspring, full twisting layout"

Faith ran through the moves in her head as she turned and walked away from the table to the back of the room. She turned to face her audience and took a breath before launching herself forward. She did every move they asked her to, plus a few extras she was proud of, landing by the table on both feet, barely affected by the routine.

Glory shot her a nasty look.

"Nice" she admitted, "but can you yell?"

"Hey, try this" Buffy said, attracting Faith's attention once again, "Razorbacks, we can't be stopped. We're the best, we're at the top. Go Razorbacks!" she cheered.

"I don't want to be at this school, you guys have no gymnastics team, cheering is a last resort!" Faith chanted back in kind. Nobody looked especially impressed, "Okay, so I never did the cheer thing before. Doesn't mean I can't learn, right?"

"Right" Buffy nodded, knowing that despite her bad attitude, Faith was by far the best gymnast they'd seen so far.

"Wrong!" Harmony protested, "She is so not joining the squad"

"What's up, Harmony?" Xander called along the table, "Worried the football players might stop hitting on you?"

"No, I'm worried the girls might _start_ hitting on me" she said giving Faith a distasteful look.

"Screw this" the brunette said, giving them the finger as she stormed out of the gym.

"Oh yeah, great Harmony, thanks a lot!" Buffy exclaimed, throwing her clipboard down on the table, "She was the best we've seen all afternoon and you know it!"

"Oh please, she wasn't that good" Glory rolled her eyes.

"This isn't a democracy girls, it's a cheer-ocracy and I'm over-ruling you" Buffy said firmly as she chased after Faith.

"A-and you know what?" Willow said, trying to sound just as tough, "If it were a democracy you'd still get over-ruled, cos there's three of us and only two of you" she pointed out.

The two blondes looked like they might kill her at any second and Willow scrambled to hide behind Xander, pointlessly since he too was afraid.

"We're gonna go" he said, grabbing Willow's hand and pelting out of the door with her. Harmony and Glory could be dangerous when they were mad, and he didn't plan on hanging around to see what they'd do next!

* * *

Buffy chased Faith all the way to her house, a little surprised by how nice it looked. As much as she knew they needed Faith on the team she was worried about what kind of person she might be. She couldn't be that bad if she lived in fancy place like this, right?

Taking a breath, Buffy knocked on the front door and waited for someone to answer, either Faith or one of her parents maybe. She was not expecting who she actually saw.

"You" she gasped, at the sight of the bleached blond she'd met earlier.

"Hey, if it isn't goldilocks from study hall" he smirked, "Decided to test my theory about practical biology did you?" he asked her with a raised eyebrow, "Gotta say, the outfit's definitely going to help" he said, looking her over. Buffy suddenly became very aware of herself in her skimpy cheerleading clothes.

"I was looking for Faith?" she said, trying to ignore his intense gaze, "Does she live here?"

"That all depends, luv" Spike told her, leaning in the doorway, "If this is to do with her debts or her drug dealing I'm not at liberty to give an answer without..."

"Shut up, William!" said a playfully angry voice as Faith came into view and smacked him across the chest, emphasising the name that was so disgusting to him, "He's joking by the way" she told Buffy, "Least he thinks he's funny"

"Bloody hell, Faith" he sighed, "You have to spoil all my fun?"

"Ain't that what I'm supposed to do now I'm your sister?" she shot back with a smirk to rival his own.

"Er, you're brother and sister?" Buffy checked, not really getting it. They didn't look at all alike and Faith sounded American where Spike seemed to be English.

"Kinda" Faith shrugged, "His Dad married my Mom, so step-brother and sister, or whatever, right?"

"Oh, I get it" Buffy nodded.

"You gonna get lost or what?" Faith asked her step-brother who made no move away from the door.

"Why the bleedin' hell should I? Buffy here happens to be a mate of mine" he smirked as Buffy opened her mouth to protest.

"You and B are friends? Yeah right" Faith laughed, "How do you even know her?"

"We met in study hall, briefly" Buffy explained, before Spike had the chance to say something disgusting like she guessed he probably would, "Faith, I'm actually here to apologise, for what Harmony was saying, Glory too. They wouldn't know a good cheerleader if they tripped over one"

"Hey, it's no big deal" Faith assured her, "Anyway as far as the whole cheering thing goes, I plead temporary insanity, man"

"You tried out to be a cheerleader?" Spike tried not to laugh at the idea and Faith hit him again.

"She did, and she's really good" Buffy answered him, "We need you on the squad, Faith, you're too good not to be with us"

"I know I'm good" the brunette told her, "but I'm a hard-core gymnast. Jumping up and down in my little skirt shouting Go Team Go is not going to be enough for me"

"But..." Buffy tried to protest but Spike put up a hand and shushed her.

"Give us a minute, okay pet?" he said as he shoved Faith back into the house and pulled the door almost completely closed.

"What the hell are you doing!" his step-sister wanted to know as she pulled her arm free from his grasp.

"I think you should be a cheerleader" he told her and she rolled her eyes.

"Why the hell would I do that?" she asked him, hands on her hips, "I mean, is this all some kind of gross thing where you just wanna see me in the outfit or..."

"Come on now, luv" Spike smirked, ignoring her "You wanted to make things interesting here in boring old SunnyD, here's your chance. I dare you to do this, be a cheerleader" he challenged her, head tilted as he stared her down.

Faith considered for a moment.

"Okay, say I do this?" she said after a moment as they continued to whisper behind the door "I got something for you too" she challenged, "Think you're so cool, get any girl you want. Get her" she smirked, tipping her head towards the door.

"Who, Buffy?" Spike asked with a look, glancing at the door and back. Little goldilocks was cute and all but not his usual type, little too prim and proper, or so she seemed.

"Get her to fall for you" Faith dared him, "Like total all out love"

"Time scale?" Spike asked, as he considered it.

"Negotiable" Faith told him simply.

If anyone had have been watching, it was clear from their manner that this what not the first time they'd made such deals.

"If I keep my end of this deal and you can't" the bleached blond said thoughtfully, "What do I get out of it?" he wanted to know.

"What did you have in mind?" his step-sister asked, not even flinching as he reached out a hand towards her, and pulled the key chain from her belt. Her car keys dangled from his fingers.

"My car?" Faith asked incredulously "No way, no I...Wait a sec" she stopped, her expression practically screaming 'Doh!" "You're never going to get Little Miss Priss to love you, what the hell am I worried about?" she asked herself with a smile, "You got yourself a deal" she agreed "but if I pull this off, I get your bike"

Spike flinched just slightly when forced to agree to the deal, his bike meant a lot to him.

"Deal" he said, shaking his step-sister's hand before opening the front door once again.

"Yo, B!" Faith called to the girl that was seriously considering leaving by now, "You want me on your little squad, I guess I'm in" she told her.

The grin on Buffy' face showed how pleased she was to have that little problem sorted, but she didn't care much for the way Spike was looking at her. She had a boyfriend after all. Flirting was one thing, but she'd never want to date a guy like William Thompson.

_To Be Continued..._


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N : Apparently this fic has some elements of Cruel Intentions, but hat's kind of a weird coincidence since I never even saw that movie! Glad the Buffy/Bring It On mixture is so popular though, and for all those fans of the movie, I recommend the second sequel (Bring It On : All Or Nothing) it's not as good as the original but way better than Bring It On Again.  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 3

"Come on now, settle down" Dr Gregory called his Biology class to order, enjoying the fact that a few students were smiling at him for now at least. In a moment he would probably be their least favourite person at Sunnydale High.

"Now, following some incidents last year" he sighed, "in particular the case with the frog dissection" he said, giving Percy West a pointed look, "Principal Snyder has asked that I assign your seats this year"

Groans and complaints echoed through the lab, followed by the scraping of stools on the floor as the students were encouraged to get out of their seats and stand to one side of the room whilst Dr Gregory got out an alphabetical seating plan.

"Okay, Parker Abrams and Callie Anderson, over here please" he gestured to a desk on the front row, "Larry Blaisdell and Lance Brooks" he continued, pairing up the class in alphabetical order back through the room. Willow and Buffy were hoping they'd end up seated together, but the red-head was called upon to sit with some girl named Marcie Ross, leaving just Buffy and Percy West left behind.

"Here we will have Buffy Summers" Dr Gregor tapped on the seat where she was to sit, "and William Thompson" he frowned, "Where is our new student?" he checked, looking around the room at all the blank expressions.

"Someone looking for me?" said an English voice a moment before Spike's smirking face appeared.

"William Thompson?" the teacher checked and Spike rolled his eyes.

"For my sins" he said grudgingly, walking down the centre of the room towards Dr Gregor.

"I have no wish to know about your past sins, Mr Thompson" the teacher told him, "but I will count every time you're late to my class as one, and you will be punished accordingly" he said sternly, "Now, please take your seat next to Miss Summers, and Percy you can take the next desk over. You never know, you may actually learn something away from your disruptive cohorts"

Spike was grinning as he took his seat, a vastly different expression to Percy who did not look at all impressed by the new system.

"We meet again, luv" Spike whispered to Buffy who shifted a little uncomfortably, "If I'd've known you were waiting here to greet me I'd've made more effort to be here on time" he told her with a wink.

"You didn't tell me you were taking Advanced Bio" she said, giving him a look, "And you knew I was taking this class"

"Dad kicked off that my subjects weren't bloody challenging enough and had me switch" he told her grumpily, the truth really being that he'd picked Biology on purpose to spend time with her. It didn't really matter to him which classes he took, he was smart enough to pick up most things enough to pass without too much effort.

"Same with my Mom" Buffy sighed, "Apparently my cheerleading abilities aren't impressive enough for her, I have to be Brainiac girl too"

"Well, y'know, you ever need a study buddy, all you have to do it ask, luv" Spike told her.

"But only for the practical study, right?" she countered, referring to what he'd said earlier, "Sorry, Spike, but I already have a friend that helps me out" she said gesturing towards the red-head girl in the next row.

"Can't blame a guy for trying" Spike shrugged, leaning forward on the desk as Dr Gregory started the lesson. Buffy glanced over at her new acquaintance, smiling slightly. Okay so she didn't want to date him but he was good looking, kinda cool, and he made her laugh. At least Advanced Bio class should be less boring with him around.

Spike was smiling too when he realised Buffy was looking at him. Right now she maybe wasn't as interested in him as he'd like but he could still win this bet. There was no chance he was going to lose to Faith, and he knew as much as she'd hate it she'd stick at being a cheerleader just to spite him.

There wasn't a girl alive that Spike couldn't get, he was confident of that. Buffy would be his before long

* * *

"Well, that was a slap and a tickle" Spike said sarcastically as Dr Gregory dismissed the class, "Been more riveted by paint drying" he complained, trying to tell himself it was worth the pain of suffering the boring classes to win the bet with Faith and get somewhere with Buffy.

"I don't know" she considered as she picked up her books, "Could be worse, and Dr Gregory's a great teacher, but y'know if you don't like maybe you shouldn't take the class" she said, wondering why she had. If Spike dropped out she'd be stuck sharing time and space with Percy West, one of the schools top football players but totally below average academically mostly because he refused to even try to learn.

"'S worth bein' bored out my skull to get the chance to sit next to the most beautiful girl in the school" Spike told her, sounding strangely honest about it as they walked out of the classroom together.

"You're so full of it" Buffy shook her head, trying not to blush at the compliment she was fairly certain was fake.

"Do I seem like the kind of bloke that'd lie about a thing like that, pet?" he asked her as they reached her locker and he leaned on the next one as he talked to her.

"I don't know you well enough to make that kind of judgement yet" she admitted, as she put her books away. She was fairly certain he couldn't argue with that or embarrass her any further.

"I'm all in favour of us two getting to know each other better, luv" Spike told her, leaning in a little too close for comfort, "Reckon we could be right good friends" he smirked.

"Maybe" Buffy agreed, backing up a little, "but we couldn't ever be more than friends" she explained, "I already have a boyfriend who's in college"

Spike nodded dumbly at that as Buffy gave him a little wave and said she'd see him around.

Course she had a boyfriend, Spike told himself as he watched her walk away, knock-out like her wasn't likely to be single, but he had sort of hoped. Still, he'd taken girls away from fellas before, and with her bloke apparently away at college, that'd make it even simpler.

"Strike one" said a voice in his ear and Spike spun round to see Faith behind him, "College boyfriend, huh? Man that makes it tough for you" she laughed.

"Tough, maybe, but not impossible" her step-brother pointed out, "And you'll be laughing on the other side of your face in about fifteen seconds" he smirked, looking at his watch. Faith just had time to give him a bemused look before the bell rang signalling the end of the school day, and of course the start of several extra curricular activities and clubs.

"Seems you should have your ass in the girls locker room by now, Faithie" Spike told her with a grin, "Don't want to be late for your cheerleading practice now do you?"

"Asshole!" Faith called behind him as he walked away down the corridor, leather coat swooshing around his legs, "You are so going down" she muttered to herself before hurrying off to practice.

* * *

Faith felt kind of self conscious as she walked into the gym where all the other cheerleaders were warming up for practice. She was moderately surprised to find several guys there, including a couple that looked more like they should be playing football than cheering for it. Then there were the two bitches, plus the red-headed girl and the brunette boy from try-outs, and a few other random girls and guys. None of them looked like the kind of people Faith associated with, and they seemed to think something similar when they looked at her.

"Okay guys, listen up" Buffy appeared and called the group to attention, "Most of you know, Amy's going through some issues right now and she's out of school for at least the next couple of months" she reminded them, "But we have a new recruit" she smiled as she put a hand on Faith's shoulder, "Guys, this is Faith" she introduced and the dark haired girl forced a smile at the mostly unimpressed crowd.

"Now, I want to start by showing Faith some of our routines" Buffy continued, "Starting with our main cheer that we're taking to Regionals"

Buffy encouraged Faith into a seat and then joined her fellow cheerleaders as they got into a formation to perform.

"Look at her" Glory said to Harmony, as they looked over at Faith, "She puts the whore in horrifying" she giggled.

"And you put the lewd in deluded!" Xander said from behind them, quickly ducking behind the much larger form of Larry when the girls turned round, looking angry.

"Okay, here we go!" Buffy yelled, signalling for someone to turn on the music.

Faith felt like curling up and dying after the fourth attempt by the cheerleaders to perfect their routine in front of her. The music was kind of repetitive and way too bubblegum pop for her taste, and watching these girls do their flips and their wiggles was not thrilling her at all. Still, she would stick at it, some of it was kind of gymnastic and maybe she could convince Buffy to change the routine a little, make it a little more complicated maybe, after all they all wanted to win this Regional Championship thing it seemed.

Whatever happened, Faith was quite determined to be one of the best cheerleaders Sunnydale High had ever seen. She refused to lose a bet to Spike, and with his reputation where women were concerned she didn't fancy her chances of winning by default. Of course if things got rough she wasn't averse to playing dirty, maybe tell Buffy a few awful things about Spike that'd guarantee she'd never date him.

Faith was grinning at the thoughts she was having when Buffy came over to talk to her.

"I guess you were impressed then, huh?" she asked, assuming that was what the smile was for, "Think you can keep up?"

"No question about it, B" Faith told her, getting up from her seat, "Let's do this"

* * *

"Well" said Spike as he sat in the living room, with his feet up on the couch as he played a video game in is hands, "If it isn't Sunnyhell High's latest and greatest pom-pom waver" he smirked, talking to his step-sister but as yet not looking at her as he concentrated on not getting his game character squished.

"You better believe it Spikey" Faith replied as she knocked his feet off the sofa and sat down beside him, making him lose his game. He gave up and switched it off.

"So, how was it? Feel like murdering any bimbo in particular?" he asked her, making her smile.

"Murder, no way" she told him with a shake of her head, "Bruise some? Oh yeah" she admitted, "Still, gotta admit, they know their stuff. At least two could've been wicked-cool gymnasts, but they're stuck doing the Go Team Go thing, just like me" she rolled her eyes, "and they don't even got the incentive I do"

"What incentive might that be, pet?" Spike challenged, "Don't really think you're gonna win this bet of ours, do you?" he asked her, almost laughing at the very idea.

"I can handle this" Faith assured him, "Question still waiting for an answer is, can you handle B?"

"I'm working on doing some serious handling, luv, believe you me" he told her with a dirty look that made Faith laugh.

"You are so full of it, man" she told him, "She is so not gonna fall for your crap"

"Already on the slippery slope, Faithie" he told her, getting up to walk away, "And when she falls I'll be there to catch her"

"She has a boyfriend, bozo" she called as he made it to the door of the room.

"Screw her boyfriend" Spike said firmly and Faith looked thoughtful before she said;

"Really don't think Little Miss Priss does that"

Then it was Spike's turn to laugh.

"So much the better" he shrugged, turning back to look at his step-sister, "We are taking Advanced Biology together after all. Maybe I'll teach her a few things" he smirked before finally leaving the room and disappearing up the stairs.

"In your dreams, Blondie" Faith sighed to herself when he was gone, "Even Buffy ain't air-headed enough to fall for you"

_To Be Continued...  
_


	4. Chapter 4

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 4

Faith sighed as she walked from the girls locker room to the gym, ready to face another two hours of torture, more popularly known as cheerleading practice. To be honest she didn't hate it as much as she pretended to, though sharing time and space with some of the bitches on the squad did get to her after a while. Buffy seemed cool though, for a cheerleader, and she and Faith actually spent a certain amount of time together outside of the pom-pom infested world too. The captain just would not cave when it came to changing the routine though, and that was one thing that bugged Faith a lot. They could all look so much more impressive, she could show them how too, given her background in gymnastics. She'd been winning competitions since she was a kid, she just knew she could help the squad win their apparently oh so important Regional competition, if only she was allowed to try. Faith hated not getting her own way, but it gave her some satisfaction to know that for every practice she turned up to, she was one step close to winning her bet with Spike.

Her dear step-brother acted all full of it, big with the bravado when he talked about Buffy and how she'd be his in no time at all, but the blonde barely mentioned Spike to Faith, and she'd seen no evidence that they were more than acquaintances. He had no chance to make any moves today either, since he wasn't even in school.

"Yo, B" the brunette frowned when she spotted her friend across the gym and went over to her, "You okay?"

"Oh, hey Faith" Buffy replied, forcing a smile, "I'm fine, I just... Is Spike okay?" she asked looking overly concerned, "I was wondering cos he didn't show in Bio and he's usually there when I arrive"

"Don't sweat it, B" Faith told her, "There ain't nothing wrong with Spike that a couple of painkillers, a gallon of water, and a cold shower won't fix" she grinned, until she realised Buffy seemed to have no idea what she was talking about, "He had a good night last night" she continued to explain, "Y'know drinking, dancing, hordes of adoring girls... or so he says" she rolled her eyes.

"Oh" was all Buffy could find to say in reply.

She wasn't into drinking herself, but the fact it seemed Spike had skipped school due to a hangover barely registered in her mind. The part of Faith's sentence that stuck out was the part about the adoring girls. Though Buffy had a boyfriend of her own, she hadn't actually seen Angel since he'd gone off to college, and Spike's attentions over the past week or so were flattering. It was disappointing to think he was equally attentive with other girls, that she might not be as special as she thought.

"Yo, Earth to B!" Faith smirked, shoving her friend lightly in the shoulder to get her attention, "Where'd your mind go?" she checked.

"Nowhere special" Buffy said with a shake of her head to clear her thoughts, "Just practice stuff, routines, y'know" she shrugged, smiling as she walked over to where the other girls and boys were getting warmed up ready for practice.

Faith frowned as she watched the blonde go and then moved to follow. Buffy seemed awful bothered about Spike suddenly, and the fact he was both hungover and had been out having a good time with some random girls last night. The brunette was soon rolling her eyes and telling herself not to be such an idiot. B was the good girl type and she had a college type boyfriend who she talked about most days. There was no way in hell she'd ever fall for a guy like her very own step-brother and his wild boy ways. Faith decided the bet she'd made was sure to go her way.

* * *

"Five, six, seven, eight, and one!" Buffy counted the end to the routine, snapping her fingers along with the rhythm as her team of cheerleaders performed the final moves and held their final pose.

"You guys that was perfect" she grinned, as Glory and Harmony hopped down off Larry and Ben's shoulders respectively. Xander and Willow were smiling too, so proud of their friend. She was a way better Captain than Cordelia had ever been, and her choice of having Faith join the team seemed to be working out well. The brunette was a hell of a gymnast, even if she was a little rough around the edges.

"Okay, everybody hit the showers, and I'll see you tonight at the game" Buffy called out to her team, "Go Razorbacks!" she added with more enthusiasm than she really felt, as the others groaned in response. They all loved to cheer and football games were fun for that, but the Sunnydale Razorbacks were reputedly the worst High School football team for miles around. It was a weird kind of irony that they had the best cheerleading team in the state.

"Good luck for tonight, Faith" Xander called as he and Willow exited the gym together, leaving just the brunette and Buffy behind.

"Thanks" the new girl smiled fakely. Like tonight was really a big deal. It was just a football game, another run through of a cheer she'd mastered almost the same day she'd been shown it. She was a hard core gymnast - this stuff was child's play.

"First game tonight" Buffy grinned as she tossed a bottle of water to her friend, "First real cheering event in front of others. You nervous?"

"Gotta say B, not so much" Faith shrugged, "I got the whole of the gang around me, cover me if I screw up, which I wouldn't anyway" she explained, sipping from the bottle of water in her hand before continuing, "Lot less terrifying than when I did gymnastic competitions all by myself at age seven"

"Wow" Buffy gasped, "There's no way I could ever be good enough to do that. Although, y'know, cheering isn't always as simple as people think"

"Oh, I ain't dissin' your sport" Faith defended herself, "I'm just sayin', I don't see it is as the big deal you do" she shrugged as she picked her sweater up from the bench and she and Buffy headed for the girls locker room.

"I guess cheering has just always been a big part of my life" Buffy sighed, "It was my escape from a lot of things, like my parents divorce and everything. Takes my mind off stuff"

Faith looked at the blonde in a new light right then. Though she'd learnt various bits of information about the cheerleader over the past couple of weeks, she still believed the girl had a pretty perfect princess life, something Faith resented Buffy just a little bit for. Her Dad had split when she was just a kid and she'd had a large number of so-called Uncles before her mother had married Spike's father. It seemed Buffy's family had been through it's own traumas and that the blonde used cheerleading for an escape, much as Faith used her gymnastics and various men.

"You okay?" Buffy's worried tone pulled the brunette from her deep thoughts and she smiled.

"Five by five, B" she assured her as they both got changed into their regular clothes. Faith was just putting her bag on her shoulder and about to offer Buffy a ride home in her car when she heard the blonde sigh heavily.

"Somethin' wrong?" Faith asked as Buffy frowned at the screen of her cell-phone.

"Kind of" she said absently, before actually looking at her friend and forcing a smile, "I mean, no" she said quickly, "I just, I kind of thought Angel would've called or messaged me or something..."

"You haven't heard from him in a while?" Faith guessed as the two girls headed out of the locker room now fully dressed and with their bags on their shoulders.

"Not so much" Buffy shook her head, "But then, he's just started college, it's a busy time" she covered for her boyfriend, "I get that he doesn't have a lot of spare time right now. I know he hasn't forgotten about me or anything"

"I'm sure he hasn't" Faith smiled fakely. Seemed to her that if you were as in love as Buffy and Angel were supposed to be you'd keep in touch with each other no matter what. A little thing like college shouldn't get in the way as far as she could see, but then she'd never been in love enough to know for sure how these things worked.

For now she'd keep her mouth shut, though the thought did occur that of Buffy was having some problems with her boyfriend she might fall all to easily into the waiting arms of Spike. Faith hated to lose a bet and as crazy as it sounded she almost felt bad that Buffy might end up hurt in all this... but not bad enough to actually say anything to her about it, or call off the deal with the step-brother.

* * *

Spike was half asleep on the couch when Faith came in from school. With both their parents working all day and paying little or no attention to their kids it had been easy enough for him to take the day off for his hangover.

"Yo Spike!" Faith yelled directly into his ear, waking him up with a start. She bust up laughing at his reaction as she pushed his feet aside and sat down on the couch beside him, glancing at the lame TV show he'd been falling asleep in front of.

"Bitch!" Spike cursed, trying to sit up, "You ought to know better than to wake a fella up like that. Might've given me a bloody heart attack" he complained as he reached to the coffee table and got out a cigarette.

"I ain't ever gonna kill you" Faith told him with a shake of her head, "but those might, lamebrain" she told him, gesturing to the pack of fags on the table. Spike rolled his eyes and lit up anyway.

"So, you have fun waving your pom-poms luv?" he smirked as they both looked at the TV without really watching it.

"Oh yeah" Faith replied, faking a yawn to show how boring it had really been.

Truth was it hadn't been so bad but she didn't want him to know she was kind of enjoying something that was so incredibly lame to him.

"Buffy mention me at all, did she?" he asked next and Faith considered whether Spike deserved to know the truth or not. He'd only crow about it if she said Buffy had asked about his welfare, but she also had the opportunity to rub his face in the fact the blonde had been bummed over her boyfriends lack of interested more than Spike's absence.

"Just asked why you didn't show today" Faith shrugged, "And sympathy for your condition kinda went out the window when I mentioned the booze, cigarettes, and a certain Drusilla, who kept you 'up' all night" she smirked.

"You bloody didn't!" Spike exploded, knowing his chances were likely to be ruined at getting Buffy to like him if she thought he was as wild as all that, and that he slept around or something.

"No, I didn't" his step-sister admitted with a chuckle at his expression, "I mentioned you had a good night, got a little drunk, and that maybe some girls were hangin' around. She doesn't know why you didn't sleep last night" she rolled her eyes, wondering why she'd bothered to even defend him as she picked up her bag and headed off to her room, "Still, you're not gonna make progress with her if you're at home here sittin' on your ass everyday" she pointed out as she turned back from the door to glance at him, "And y'know I'm, like, the most devoted cheerleader ever" she said, faking a Valley girl voice that made Spike smirk.

"I'll get plenty of chances to get the girl, Faithie" he told her with a look, "Stayin' here tonight, right?" he checked.

"Yes" Faith sighed, "She's comin' here after the game. Given that her folks and ours are out it made sense, but you do not even talk to her, got it?" she said pointing a finger at him sternly, "She ain't so bad y'know, I don't want you messin' with her too much"

"Bloody hell, luv, you going soft on me?" Spike almost laughed at that surprising revelation, "Either way, pet, we had a bet, and there's no going back on that" he swore to her, "Buffy Summers will love me, I'll see to that"

_To Be Continued..._


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N : Okay, did everybody get really bored of thois fic or was everybody busy on my last update and didn't review? Oh well, I'll keep posting, so long as even one or two people are reading and reviewing. I just love to write fic!  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 5

"You're kinda quiet back there, Buff" Xander said as he glanced in the rear view mirror at his friend in the back seat, "Something wrong?"

"Huh? No, nothing" Buffy told him quickly, painting on a smile as she glanced up at her friends.

"You sure, Buffy?" Willow checked, turning around in the front passenger seat as Xander pulled the car up outside Faith's house, "You have been awful quiet today"

"It's nothing, really" the blonde repeated, "I just... I guess, I miss Angel. This is our first game since he went off to college and, it's not the same without him" she shrugged, knowing that was only half the reason for her strange mood. The other reason was Faith's step-brother Spike. She was missing him too, after just a day of enduring his absence, and knowing that he probably hadn't missed her at all.

"Come on, Faith" Xander said to himself, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel as he looked up at the house, "You told her the right time, right?" he checked with Buffy who nodded that she had.

Unwilling to leave his vehicle for the sake of a girl he didn't like all that much anyway, Xander leant on the car horn and hoped it got the girls attention.

"There she is" Willow smiled as the front door opened and out stepped a very uncomfortable looking Faith in a burgundy and gold cheerleding outfit. It was strange to see her so lacking in confidence but she felt a little stupid in the little top and short skirt, so far from her usual attire.

"Foxy lady!" Xander yelled, grinning as she appeared to be blushing, and Buffy wolf whistled to add to the effect as Faith's confidence returned and she proved she could still bust a move as she came down towards the car, using the music from the car stereo for a beat.

"Check it out" Buffy smiled as her friend got into the car beside her, "Miss Lehane lookin' fine" she laughed as Faith, playfully shoved her in the shoulder.

"Get out of here" the brunette said, "I just ain't used to this kinda outfit is all"

"Well, gotta say, Faith, you fill it well enough" Xander told her as he glanced in the rear view mirror.

"Lookin' pretty sporty yourself there, Xand" she told him, "You too, Willow" she passed the comment onto the red-head as she turned to smile at her.

"You nervous about your first game?" she asked, trying to be friendly to the girl who was turning out to be a lot nicer than she originally seemed.

"Not so much" Faith shrugged her shoulders, "I been doing gymnastic competitions since I was a little kid, that's way more pressure than this"

"You want pressure, you shoulda joined the football team instead of the squad" Xander told her, making Faith look to Buffy for an explanation.

"They don't exactly win much" the blonde explained.

"Yeah, most people only show up to see you ladies shake your groove thing" Xander added, a little bitterly. It'd be nice, just for once, to be appreciated for the one sport he was good at, instead of having his sexuality called into question at every turn.

"I can deal with that" Faith nodded to herself, "And y'know, don't feel so bad, Xand" she said with a smirk, guessing what his problem was, "There'll be at least one of us watching you shake your... thing" she told him, flashing him a decidedly dirty look in the rear view mirror. He didn't respond to that, but the other girls did, their laughter almost completely drowning out the radio.

* * *

"Go Razorbacks!" the cheerleaders ended their routine and the crowd of supporters went crazy for their squad, just like they always did. Though Faith would never admit it, she kinda liked the buzz of it all.

"Oh my God" she gasped as she was dropped down off Larry's shoulders, landing by Buffy who grinned.

"Kind of a rush doing this in front of the crowd, huh?" the head cheerleader smiled, but that wasn't quite what Faith had meant.

"Yeah, sure, whatever" she agreed awkwardly, "but I kinda meant oh my God as in my freak of a step-brother is sittin' right up there!" she said, gesturing up to where Spike was sat in the centre of so many overly spirited supporters of the Sunnydale Razorbacks, the majority of which had about as much interest in football as he did. Like so many others the bleached blond had turned up to see the cheerleaders, one in particular of course, and that was Buffy Summers.

He smiled when he spotted her looking his way, rolling his eyes as his step-sister gave him a look and a wave that he ignored. Faith thought she was so smart, but she was wrong. She might stick it out as a cheerleader, she was pretty good at the pom-pom waving, but Spike was not going to lose this bet. The way Buffy couldn't quite keep eye contact with him told him he was already getting somewhere as he pushed his head phones firmly in his ears and the two football teams ran out onto the field.

American football, God he hated it. Load of poofters padded up just to play glorified rugby, least that's how Spike saw it. Right now he could be at home watching Manchester United v Arsenal on the telly, but he had to admit, trading that for the sight of many a scantily clad girl, shaking her goods for his entertainment was not something he could really complain about.

As was expected, the Sunnydale High Razorbacks suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of their rival team, but still the crowd yelled and cheered for their amazing cheerleading squad who they were sure would be bringing home trophies from both the Regional and National competitions this year.

Spike hadn't really been overly interested in the so-called football game or the frantic jumping and yelling of the squad but tonight was his night and there was a reason why he'd shown up at the game. He planned to spend as much time as he could with Buffy Summers, and prove to his step-sister that he really could get any girl to fall in love with him, even those with picture perfect college age boyfriends.

"Well, you excelled yourself, Blondie" Faith laughed as she appeared behind him on the way out of the stadium, "You at a football game? Man, I thought I'd never see the day"  
"Gotta make an effort if I'm gonna win this bet, luv" he told her with a smirk, "Feint heart never won fair lady, and all that rot"

"Whatever" Faith rolled her eyes, "I guess I'll see you at home" she said, turning to walk away when he called her back.

"No need to be bothering anyone else, pet" he told her, calling to Buffy as she looked around for Faith, "Over here, luv"

"Hey Spike" she was grinning broadly when she came over, but also very aware of his eyes crawling over her form that wasn't covered much by her cheerleading uniform. It was weird, she'd just been dancing around in the very same outfit in front of hundreds of people, including Spike, but like this it was a lot more embarrassing somehow, "Um, I guess you're feeling better now? We kinda missed you at school today" she said, wondering why she felt so ridiculously shy, she wasn't usually like this!

"I'm just fine, thanks for asking, luv" he smirked as Faith pretended to throw up behind her friends back at the disgusting display of faked friendship, "Figured I'd give you ladies a ride back to ours" Spike smirked, but his step-sister shook her head.

"Great plan, Brainiac" she said, giving him a look, "but three don't fit on your motorcycle"

"'S why I brought the car" he pointed out, gesturing towards the black DeSoto parked up ahead. Faith couldn't help but laugh.

"You brought your Dad's car?" she chuckled, "If he finds out..."

"Shut up, Faith, there's a good girl" he muttered near her ear as he shoved her along towards the car.

Thankfully Buffy hadn't heard that last part. Spike was seriously wondering how you were supposed to impress a lady with a step-sister in the way making stupid bloody comments at every turn, but he'd find a way. It'd be a cold day in hell before he lost a bet to a woman, especially his step-sister of all people!

"Thank you, Spike" Buffy smiled as he opened the door for her outside the house where he and Faith lived.

"You're welcome, luv" he smiled back, though his look soon changed as Faith got out of the car behind her. He was less than thrilled at her for encouraging her friend to sitting the back of the car instead of in the front next to him. She was not going to make this easy, that was for damn sure, but he still had all night. Faith couldn't chaperone him and Buffy every minute, however much she'd like to try.

"Okay so, we're going to my room" the brunette told Spike as soon as they got in the front door, "You enter on pain of death, got it?" she checked, before running up the stairs. Buffy glanced at the bleached blond, shot him a smile, before hurrying after her friend.

"Bugger" Spike cursed to himself, as he wandered through to the kitchen. Tonight was not going as planned at all and it did not put him in the best of moods. Raiding the fridge he found a can of beer stashed at the back and helped himself to it. It was unlikely his father would notice it was gone, or care if he did.

Upstairs he could hear Buffy and Faith laughing together, something a little strange to him since this was probably the first and only time he'd known his step-sister have a friemd sleepover. She wasn't the nicest person, didn't play with others too well, though her and Spike rubbed along okay. She was making a big effort with Buffy, but her reason was no different to Spike's really, it was all for the bet. He almost felt sorry for the poor bint who did not realise her two latest mates were in fact using her for a game, but she had plenty of other friends and that great idiot of a boyfriend too, she'd be fine.

In the meantime, he had to find a way to get her attention, he thought as he slumped down on the couch and drank his beer. Now, what would be the best way to do that...

"You really have a thing for black, don't you?" Buffy observed as she sat on Faith's bed with her and looked around at the decor.

"Not so much" her friend shrugged, "I just knew it'd wig the folks if I painted my room like this, so I did" she laughed.

"Is that why Spike wears black and dyes his hair like that?" Buffy asked curiously, "To freak out your parents?"

"I dunno" Faith admitted, "It's a look, it works for him. I never asked where he got it, but hey, do we have to talk about my lame-ass step-brother all night?" she checked, as she slid out of her cheerleading uniform and into some more comfortable clothes. Buffy opened up her sports bag and did the same.

"I thought you guys got along okay?" Buffy frowned, looking over at Faith who's head soon appeared through the hole in her top.

"And I thought you already had a boyfriend?" the brunette shot back with a look that made Buffy laughed.

"I do" she confirmed, "It's not like I feel that way about Spike, I just... I guess we're kinda friends"

"Newsflash, Buffy" Faith shook her head, "Spike doesn't have friends, okay? He has people he screws, and people he screws over"

The blonde didn't have an answer to that, though she couldn't quite believe Spike was so awful. Brothers and sisters were prone to fighting, she knew that from her friends and their siblings, even their cousins and other members of their families. Okay, so Spike and Faith weren't blood related but they lived like brother and sister, they were just as likely to not get along as others.

Buffy decided it was probably best not to mention Spike again tonight, just to have a fun slumber-party-esque night with Faith who was rapidly becoming one of her best friends. It had seemed so unlikely that they would ever get along when the brunette first auditioned to be on the squad, but now Buff couldn't imagine not having her around.

"I'm gonna grab a shower" Faith said, headed for the door, before realising Spike had also come upstairs and was moving around in his room down the hall, "You wanna run downstairs and grab some snacks from the kitchen? I'm starved"

"Okay" Buffy agreed, following on out the door. Faith went one way to the bathroom, Buffy headed the other towards the stairs when a sound caught her attention and she stopped. At first she figured Spike had put on a CD but it didn't sound right for that...

Turning back, Buffy moved down the hall and stopped by the slightly open door of Faith's step-brother's room. She could see him in the centre of the room, an electric guitar in his hands that was hooked up to an amp. Though she had no idea what song he was trying to play, she assumed it was something by one of the punk rock bands, the posters for whom were stuck to every available wall space she realised as she pushed the door open a little more and looked around.

With his back to her, Buffy assumed Spike didn't know she was there, but he could feel her eyes burning into the back of him. Another minute to make sure Faithie was firmly in the shower and unaware of what was going on, and then he'd make his move.

_To Be Continued..._


	6. Chapter 6

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 6

Buffy almost completely forgot where she was and what she was doing as she stood in Spike's bedroom doorway watching him play his electric guitar, and listening to him sing. Even from the back he was completely hot, tight black jeans and T-shirt clinging to his well toned body in all the right places. She mentally chastised herself for taking such pleasure in watching him, after all she had a boyfriend whom she loved very much and she'd never cheat on Angel with Spike or anybody else, but there was no harm in looking she thought to herself.

"Enjoying the show, pet?" Spike asked as he finished his song and turned around to face her.

"Oh, I wasn't... I'm sorry" she said all in a jumble as she made to run away. Spike was to the door in a second, grabbing her wrist so she couldn't escape.

"Never said I minded the audience, did I, luv?" he asked her and she smiled up at him, wondering why her heart was suddenly thumping at a hundred miles an hour. Maybe because this was as close as she'd ever been to Spike, and the fact that they were surrounded by bedrooms wasn't helping. Buffy's thoughts all jumbled together and forming a sentence became an issue for a while. Eventually she managed to speak as she extracted her wrist from his grasp.

"I was just passing by, I heard music" she explained, "You're very good, at the guitar playing, I mean, and the singing too actually" she told him, though in all honesty she didn't know what tune he was trying to get out of the instrument or his own mouth, he had seemed like he knew what he was doing, even if the lyrics did seem to be highly repetitive and about being sedated or something...

"Thanks" Spike humoured her, though he knew he wasn't as great as all that, "Y'know you did bloody well at your cheering and all tonight, very... enthusiastic" he went for, no other reasonable adjective springing to mind. He had considered telling her she looked sexy or similar but wasn't sure she was ready to take that kind of compliment from him yet, without getting all 'I have a boyfriend, remember?' like she had a couple of times before

"Thank you" she blushed slightly at his compliment, eyes flitting to the floor and back, "Faith was great too, I mean, she is way more gymnastic than me"

"Not the captain though, is she, luv?" he reminded her, "She was so good she'd have taken over your gig, but not a bit of it. Don't you let her forget who's in charge, right?"

"Okay" Buffy nodded as Spike took the strap of guitar over his head and carefully laid the instrument down, "Er, I'm supposed to be going down for food" the blonde said as she watched him, "You, er, wanna show me where to find?" she asked and Spike agreed he would, coming out of his room and locking the bedroom door behind himself.

"You lock your door?" Buffy frowned slightly and Spike smirked as he pocketed the key and walked towards the stairs with her.

"Let's just say we have trust issues in this house" he rolled his eyes, "Roughly translated my T-shirts keep coming back from the wash too big in the chest area"

"Oh" Buffy smiled, laughing lightly as she realised what he meant, "I guess that's one advantage of being an only child, my clothes don't go missing so much" she said as they descended the stairs and Spike led her through to the kitchen.

"Faithie's not so bad most of the time" he shrugged, "Bein' an only child, 's all well and good but sometimes my Dad pays a bit too much attention, y'know? Least now he's married he's got other people to drive nuts all bloody day" he said as he opened up the cupboards and pulled out bags of chips and cookies, "This the sort of thing you wanted?" he checked.

"I dunno" Buffy said, thoughtfully, picking up one of the packets and reading the back of it, "Oh my God, did you see how many calories are in these!" she gasped.

"Bleedin' hell, luv" spike cursed, "Tell me you of all people are not on a diet"

"Not a diet as such" she told him, "but you have to watch your figure"

"No need for you to do that, luv" he smirked, "Got me to watch it for you" he winked before looking in another cupboard for something else either the girls or he himself might want to eat.

Buffy hid the blush that rose in her cheeks by hiding behind the packet in her hand til she felt the heat disperse from her face. When she dared to look at Spike again he was looking right back at her.

"What?" she asked warily as he stared at her with what she perceived to be a weird smile on his face.

"Nothin', pet" he told her, "I was just thinkin' is all, a woman like yourself ought not to have trouble keeping a boyfriend" he said thoughtfully, "You suppose your bloke swings the other way as you might say?" he smirked as he bit into an apple from the fruit bowl on the counter.

"I beg your pardon?" Buffy's eyes went wide at the implication of what she thought Spike meant.

"Just wonderin', luv" the bleached blond shrugged as he sat down on the stool next to hers, "If he doesn't want you..."

"He does want me" Buffy interrupted, "Angel loves me, and I love him, and where did you ever get the idea that anything had changed?" she wanted to know.

"I dunno" he shrugged once again, "Seems to me he hasn't been around much, or I'd've heard about it. Faith's a talker when she gets a bit trashed, she'd've mentioned the famous Angel should she have met him" he explained, as he continued to eat his apple, carefully hiding his smirk as he saw the cogs turning in Buffy's head. He was making her doubt the great git she dated, all part of his plan to win her over, and therefore also win the bet he had going with his step-sister.

"Angel is busy at college is all" Buffy said, looking down at the packet of cookies in her hand, the very one she'd been complaining had too many calories in it and yet she was opening it up now and preparing to sink the entire contents, so Spike reckoned, "He'll call soon"

"Course he will, luv" Spike agreed, reaching out to put his fingers under her chin and turn her head til she was looking at him, "He'd have to be deaf, dumb, and blind not to want a girl like you" he told her softly, his face just inches from her own. Buffy felt she might drown in the deepness of his blue eyes as they both leaned into each other, him more deliberately than her.

"Hey, cool, I thought we were all out of these" Faith practically yelled as she came into the kitchen and pulled the packet of cookies from Buffy's hand.

The moment broken, all Buffy could do was offer her friend a forced smile and wonder what the hell had just almost happened, whilst Spike shot murderous looks at his step-sister as she hopped up to sit on the counter. She grinned at him innocently as she took a big bite out of a cookie and then turned to Buffy.

"This idiot bothering you?" she asked her, "Cos y'know, feel free to tell him to go drown himself in the tub or whatever, it's what I always do" she smiled.

"It's fine" Buffy smiled nervously, "We were just talking is all"

"Uh-huh" Faith nodded as she glanced between the two of them, not entirely convinced.

"Well, I'll leave you to ladies to it then" Spike said eventually, disappearing up to his bedroom, but not before stopping in the kitchen doorway and shooting a look Buffy's way. She couldn't hold his gaze and quickly started talking to Faith about some cheerleading routine or some such, anything to take her mind of what she'd almost done. The brunette let the topic go and carried on normally, taking Buffy back up to her room where she threw on a CD and the pair talked and ate, all in a very slumber party kind of a way. Faith had never done this kind of thing before, a party for her was booze and men, not lounging around in her PJs talking about cheerleading and eating junk. Still, she found Buffy was a lot more fun and interesting than perhaps she'd given her credit for.

From across the hall, Spike could hear the laughter emanating from his sister's room on occasion. God he could kill the bint for screwing with his plans. Of course she had no wish to see him win this bet. If she had any doubts at all that she couldn't stick it out as a cheerleader she had to ensure that he didn't manage to get Buffy to fall for him. He was sure she waited til just the right moment to ruin his plans in the kitchen. He'd have had Buffy eating out of his hand in seconds if he could've just kissed her, he was sure, but he never got the chance and it could be a while before he got another.

Or not, he amended in his head as he heard Faith's door open and close with a thud. Only one pair of feet went across the landing, meaning either Buffy had been left alone in the bedroom or had gone along to the bathroom by herself, as you'd expect. Ever wary of his sister who would try to scupper his plans, Spike opened up his bedroom door and peered out into the hall.

Someone was singing in the bathroom, and it wasn't Faith. He'd heard her in the shower enough times to know the kind of empowered woman tripe she squawked out and it was never The Ramones. Spike smirked as he listened to Buffy humming and mumbling what seemed to be her own little interpretation of I Wanna Be Sedated that he'd been performing for his own amusement just an hour or so before.

"Yo, freakazoid!" Faith called from her bedroom door, making him jump, "You gonna stop being a pervert any time soon?" she checked as she leant against the door frame with her arms folded across her chest.

Spike rolled his eyes as he walked from the bathroom door back to where his step-sister was.

"I was listening to her sing, you silly bint" he told Faith with a look, "Nothin' sinister about that y'know, 'specially since she was doing the same thing outside my bedroom door not so long ago"

"Whatever, Spike" Faith told him, "Just what the frickin' hell was going on in the kitchen before I got there? She has a boyfriend in case you forgot"

"Yeah, and we have a bet, in case you forgot" Spike shot back at her in a whisper, very aware of the fact Buffy could appear at any moment, "All's fair in love and war, pet, and that includes our little arrangement"

"I know that" Faith said, looking a little pained, "But, look, just don't go hurting her, okay? She's decent, she treats me okay"

"Oh, how cute" Spike smirked annoyingly, "Faithie's got a little friend has she? Doesn't want to see her playmate havin' a rough time?"

"Asshole" Faith spat as she went to take a swing at him, just as Buffy came out of the bathroom.

"Is something going on?" she asked as Spike caught his step-sister's arm that came flying at him and smiled at the blonde.

"Not so as you'd notice, pet" he smirked, letting Faith's hand go and stepping back away from her towards his bedroom, "You two have a good night, and don't stay up too late, Mummy and Daddy wouldn't approve" he smirked before finally disappearing from view and shutting his bedroom door behind him.

"That was... weird" Buffy said as she and Faith went back into her room and shut the door, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, sure" Faith told her, not looking like she meant it at all, "Spike is just... B, you ain't into him, right?"

"Into Spike?" she made a face, "Of course not. I mean he's cool and all but I have a boyfriend, remember?" she said, not keeping eye contact when she said it, which made Faith wonder if she was as certain about her answer as she might be.

This was bad, very, very bad.

_To Be Continued...  
_


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N : Glad you all seem to think I'm keeping the characters in-character as well as not copying the movie word-for-word. Both are not always easy to acheieve, and I appreciate the support for this story.  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 7

"Alright, pet?" Spike checked as he swung into the biology lab and took his seat beside Buffy. She was frowning hard as she pushed buttons on her cell-phone and stared at it in apparent disbelief.

"Hey, Spike" she spared him a glance, before looking back at her phone, "I think there's something wrong with this thing" she complained as she slammed her hand against the side and pushed some more buttons, still apparently not getting the result she wanted.

"Want me to look at it?" Spike offered but Buffy shook her head.

"Nah, that's okay" she said with a half smile as she closed her cell and shoved it back into her bag. She didn't want to admit to him that the problem might not be with her cell-phone at all, and was possibly with her boyfriend instead. She'd tried calling him, left several messages for him with his room-mates or on his voice-mail. She'd sent text messages too over the past couple of days, and several just last night, and yet she'd heard nothing from him - not one message, not one call back.

Buffy felt a little stupid, telling everybody about her fantabulous boyfriend when she hadn't seen him since he'd gone off to college and had only managed to talk to him twice. Neither time had been longer than five minutes and his excuses for not contacting her before all sounded a little lame. She didn't want to think that, she wanted to believe he was busy, and he could be. After all, starting college was a big. Lots of reading to do, classes to attend, people to meet... the last part bothered her more than most, after all people could mean female people, and not High School girls like her but experienced college girls.

"Miss Summers" the teacher suddenly called on her, snapping her out of her Angel-daze, "Could you tell us what the answer is?" he asked.

"Er, well..." Buffy shifted awkwardly in her seat.

Of course she couldn't tell him the answer, she hadn't even heard the question. In a panic she looked down at the text book before her, not even certain it was on the right page. Spike knew it was, after all he was the one who'd been turning the pages for her whilst she was off in dream land the past ten minutes. Now he had to help her again if he didn't want her to get in trouble. By some miracle he actually knew what the answer to the question was and purposely knocked his pen from the table so he had an excuse to lean over close to her, and whisper in her ear.

"Er, it's the... chlorophyll?" she said uncertainly, praying this wasn't some kind of joke on Spike's part and that he really had given her the answer.

"Chlorophyll" the teacher repeated, "is indeed what makes the leaves green" he smirked slightly as he glanced from Buffy to the boy next to her, "Thank you for your assistance, Mr Thompson" he said to Spike before turning back to the chalk board and continuing the lesson.

"Thanks" Buffy whispered as the bleached blond smirked at her.

"Not a problem, luv" he replied as the girl made a proper effort to listen for the rest of the lesson and follow in the book, just like she ought to have been doing all along.

* * *

The bell rang for the end of class and Spike followed Buffy out into the hall.

"Somethin' wrong, pet?" he checked, "Other than the broken cell-phone obviously"

"Not so much" she lied, as her mind when hurtling back to the topic of Angel and why he hadn't called her at all.

"'S not like you to zone out like that" Spike said as they wallked down the hall together, "Must be somethin' bloody important on your mind all of a sudden, I mean, you were fine last night"

"It's nothing" Buffy said awkwardly as she stopped at her locker and opened it up. Spike stopped with her and pressed the point, eager to know what had distracted her so much in a class that usually held her attention.

"Not buying it, luv" he told her, smirking annoyingly, "I know there's somethin' bugging you"

"You mean other than you?" Buffy said almost nastily as she slammed her locker door. She sighed when she caught sight of the look on Spike's face, she hadn't meant to snap at him or hurt his feelings really, "I'm sorry" she said solemnly, "It's just... I was expecting a call and I didn't get it, it kinda made me think"

"Wouldn't be your idiot boyfriend who was s'posed to call and didn't bother, would it?" Spike asked, picking at his black nail polish.

"Angel is not an idiot" Buffy said, anger edging her tone, "He's just... busy is all"

"But you're not denying it was him you're waiting for a call from?" Spike checked, liking the fact she was getting mad, since it meant he'd hit a nerve. If he could help her get annoyed about Angel's lack of interest she might just dump the bugger, or go nuts enough at the git that he dumped her for being a nag. Either way it would leave Buffy all free and single, and available for him to bag as his own. With Faith doing so well at her cheerleading it was vital he got Buffy to love him as soon as possible, before the bet was lost.

"Y'know what?" she said, eyes flashing angrily, "It is none of your business anyway. I don't know why I'm even having this conversation with you!" she yelled, before saunterering off down the corridor before Spike could even blink. He called her name behind her but she ignored him and was gone from sight amongst the throng of students in seconds.

"Oh, bugger"

* * *

"Yo, B, what's up?" Faith asked as Buffy crashed into the girls locker room, looking less than happy.

"Why do people keep asking me stupid questions!" the blonde exploded, "I'm fine" she said firmly, looking far from it as she threw her bag down and pulled out her cheerleading uniform.

"Woah, take a chill pill, man" Faith urged her as she pulled her top over her head and exchanged it for the maroon and gold alternative ready for practice.

"I'm sorry Faith" Buffy sighed as she too got changed form one set of clothes to the other, "I'm just not having the best day"

"Ooh, what's up, Buffy?" Glory giggled, "Someone steal your boyfriend? Oh no wait, you wouldn't know, since you haven't talked to him for like ever!" she grinned thinking she was just hilarious, especially when Harmony joined in the gigglefest.

"Glory, shut up!" Buffy yelled angrily, "And get your ass in gear for practice!" she commanded. Though the two giggly blondes hated having to obey they knew they had to listen to the captain if they wanted to stay on the squad, and they really did.

Faith chased her friend out into the gym, grabbing her arm just as they cleared the doors.

"Hey, if you need to talk or somethin'" she said vaguely, feeling weird even offering but meaning what she said. Buffy was turning out to be very different to what she'd originally thought, much less the blonde airhead, much more a friend.

"Thanks" Buffy managed a smile, "but I'm fine, really. Glory and Harmony, well, I'm used to their 'jokes'" she sarcastically air-quoted, "I'm okay"

"Cool" Faith nodded, also forcing a smile. If there was one thing she understood it was people and the ways in which they hid emotions, she was the queen of that particular skill and knew that despite what she said Buffy was far from fine. Still she'd leave it for now and see what happened in practice before she pushed the point anymore.

* * *

Walking out into the quad after practice, Buffy pulled out her cell-phone and punched in her boyfriends number again, hoping against hope that maybe this time he'd pick up. Glory and Harmony had teased her in a round about way for the past hour and she was so close to snapping and threatening to kick them all into next week it was untrue. All she really wanted was to talk to Angel and hear him tell her he loved her and that everything was okay.

She grinned, feeling thrilled when she heard his voice.

"Yeah?" he said into the receiver, sounding as if he just woke up, despite the fact it was four thirty in the afternoon.

"Angel, it's me, Buffy" she said brightly, "I haven't heard from you in a while, are you okay?"

"Buffy, hey" he replied, "How are things, sweetheart?"

"Peachy with a side of keen" she lied, anger at him and everybody else all gone away just because she could hear his voice, "I was actually more worried about you, since you didn't call me or reply to my messages at all"

"I'm sorry, baby" Angel told her, "I've just been swamped with homework and essays and all" he explained, "plus my cell-phone got lost somewhere between home and here I think, I meant to tell you, I swear"

"It's okay" Buffy smiled, "I'm just so glad you're okay, oh, and also, I wanted to check you'll be there on Saturday"

"Saturday?" he echoed, wracking his brains.

"Yeah, for the Regional competition" she reminded him and it all suddenly clicked into place in Angel's brain.

"Right, Regionals, sure" he nodded to himself, "Of course I'll be there, Buffy, it's your big event. First competition as captain, very exciting"  
"Kinda nerve wracking too" she admitted, "Trying to keep Harmony and Glory in line some days is just not easy!"

"You can do it, Buffy, I know you can" Angel told her, "Look, I'm sorry, honey, but I gotta go right now. I'll see you Saturday, okay?"

"Okay" his girlfriend smiled, "I love you"

"You too, Buff" he assured her before hanging up the phone and throwing it haphazardly to the ground as he flopped back amongst the dishevelled bed clothes.

"Who was that?" asked the young woman in black lacy underwear who had just woken up beside him.

"Nobody that matters as much as you, Darla" Angel grinned as he leant in to kiss her, his hands running over her body as their passion ignited once again.

* * *

"Alright, luv?" Spike asked as Faith came in through the back door into their kitchen where he was fixing a sandwich.

"Been better" she shrugged, "Practice was kinda not fun, what with all the bitchin' and Buffy bein' in some deep funk about Angel or whatever"

"Yeah, don't think I helped with that" Spike admitted as he took a bite out of his sandwich and hopped up to sit on the edge of the counter, "She was pissed at her fella for not calling her, and apparently cos I wasn't patting the great git on the back for treating her badly it's my fault" he rolled his eyes, "I swear to God, you women do not make sense"

"If we made sense we wouldn't be half so much fun to figure out, bonehead" Faith told him simply, stealing the other half of his sandwich from the counter and hurrying through to the living room before he could stop her.

"Bitch" he cursed as he swallowed his mouthful and went after her.

"You only just figured that out" Faith grinned, not at all phased as she flopped down into an armchair and flipped on the TV. Spike was soon sprawled out on the couch as they watched some random cartoon for lack of anything else to do.

"Y'know Buffy's not the blonde ditz she looks like she oughta be" Faith said suddenly, looking at the TV and her sandwich more than at Spike whom she was actually speaking too.

"Yeah, I know" Spike agreed, "Spend time with her too y'know, in Bio and all"

"I know that" Faith rolled her eyes, "What I mean is... I don't wanna see her get hurt, man" the brunette said, almost looking embarrassed about it, something Spike really wasn't used to when it came to his step-sister.

"Look, pet" he said, flipping off the TV and turning to face Faith full on, "We had a deal, but if you wanna back out that's fine, s'pose we'll just have to say I win by default"

"Bite me, Blondie!" Faith yelled indignantly, "No frickin' way are you winnin' this bet!"

"Shut your hole about Buffy then" Spike told her, getting up from the couch and heading for the stairs, leaving a seething Faith behind him.

_To Be Continued..._


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N : Major apologies on two counts - one, cos it's sooo long since I last updated this fic, and two, cos this chapter ain't exactly huge. Please forgive me, gentle readers, and I will try not to let this kind of thing happen again!  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 8

"No! No! No!" Buffy yelled, switching off the music, "Glory! Harmony! What the hell is up with you!"

"What is up with us?" Harmony gasped incredulously.

"Two words" Glory snapped, "Over. Worked."

"Hey, isn't that one word?" Xander asked the red-head beside him.

Willow nodded, a little surprised that her friend actually knew that, though nobody else was listening, they were too busy watching Buffy and the other two blondes face off.

"You are pushing us way too hard" Harmony complained, getting all up in Buffy's face, "What is your problem?"

"My problem?" Buffy asked incredulously, "How about the fact we have to go compete at Regionals in two days and you guys can't seem to perform simple routines that we learnt last year!" she yelled, "You two totally went the wrong way and on the wrong beat"

"Uh, actually, Buff" Xander said nervously, "That was the wrong way on the right beat" he pointed out, "Your timing was a little off"

Buffy frowned as she looked at her friend. She wasn't encouraged by the way Willow wouldn't meet her eyes or the look Faith gave her.

"See, it's not just us who messes up" Harmony smiled, looking smug.

"Hey, how about we call it quits for today" Faith suggested, not loving the atmosphere in the gym right now.

A massive argument, worthy of the title World War Three would likely erupt if certain blondes were not removed from each others sight as a matter of urgency. Personally she couldn't deal with the inevitable cat fight, complete with screaming and hair-pulling. Girls like that made her ashamed of her own gender!

"Thank God that Harley girl has some sense" said Glory as the squad disbanded, and the boys and girls went their separate ways to the appropriate locker rooms.

Buffy made a sound of aggravation in her throat and stormed over to where she'd left her bag, throwing the music cassette into it and pulling out a bottle of Evian.

"You okay, B?" Faith asked as she came over to the blonde, "Cos you're kinda stressing a lot today"

Swallowing a mouthful of water, Buffy sighed.

"It's called pressure Faith" she pointed out her problem that she thought should have been quite obvious, "The Sunnydale Razorbacks squad have won Regionals four years in a row, and everybody is expecting us to make it five this year" she explained, "We have to win"

"Geez, B" Faith sighed, "Not to sound like one of your little Valley girl friends but, obsessive much?" she said with a look, "You have got to chill out, man"

"I don't have time to 'chill out' Faith" Buffy told her a she picked up her bag and headed for the locker room, her friend on her heels, "I have homework, and studying, and Regionals to win, a boyfriend that goes AWOL on a regular basis..." she stopped when she realised those words had slipped out without her meaning for them to, and right when she'd just cleared the locker room doors. Twenty girls turned and stared at her, some feeling bad for her, others sniggering behind their hands at the revelation. Seemed the rumours were true, that Angel had much less time for Buffy these days.

With what looked to be tears forming in her eyes she turned around and walked straight back out the door, again with Faith right behind her.

"Why did I say that right then?" the blonde cursed herself for being such an idiot, "I can't handle all this"

"B, you gotta calm down" her friend told her, "Look, I'll tell you what we're gonna do" she said, suddenly getting an idea, "My folks have gone on some getaway trip, left this morning and won't be back til Sunday. How about you come over to mine tonight, ditch the studies for a few hours, forget the cheering bitches in there" she said, jerking her thumb back towards the locker room, "Just hang out, have fun for a while. What d'ya say?"

"My Mom is working late at the gallery tonight, so it's not like I have to go home right away, and I could use the R and R" Buffy said as she considered it, "Yeah, sure, why not" she smiled at last, "Thanks, Faith. You're a good friend" she said, making the brunette feel a little guilty.

"Yeah, sure, whatever" she agreed uncomfortably as the girls gathered up their stuff and headed out.

* * *

"This is the life" Faith smiled as she laid out on the grass in the back yard of her house, next to the person that could possibly be called her best friend, the first real friend she'd had since she was five. They were catching the last of the sun, just chilling out, with the stereo making background noise and a drink each in their hands.

"I am definitely more relaxed" Buffy smiled back, though in all honesty she was still going over cheerleading routines, homework assignments, and her Angel issues in her head.

"You sure you don't want a little kick in your OJ?" Faith asked her, as she sipped her own vodka and orange, made after a successful break-in to her parents liquor cabinet by way of a twisted paper-clip in the lock - a trick she knew Spike also used.

"No, thanks, I'm fine" Buffy assured her friend, not at all into drinking alcohol herself.

"Y'know B, I couldn't be as straight-laced as you for all the cash in the world" Faith shook her head, laughing good-naturedly at the look on Buffy's face.

"I am _not_ straight-laced" she frowned a little, "I do stuff that I shouldn't"

"Uh-huh" Faith smirked, "C'mon badass, give us a rundown of all the stuff you've been grounded for or gotten detention for"

"Well..." Buffy considered, "Ooh, one time, I got detention for getting into a fight with another girl in my class" she said suddenly, looking very pleased with herself.

"A fight?" Faith checked, peering over her sunglasses at the other girl, "Over what?"

Buffy glanced away before she sheepishly answered.

"A Barbie" she said quietly, "I was five"

Faith bust up laughing at that as she flopped back onto he grass and looked up at the blue sky.

"Man, we ain't exactly cut from the same cloth or whatever" she said, the phrase her step-father often used springing to mind, "But you're okay, for a blonde chick"

"Thanks" Buffy laughed at the back-handed compliment, "I guess you're okay too, for a 'Harley girl'" she air-quoted the name that Glory and Harmony had often used in a much less pleasant tone when referring to Faith.

The pair lay on their backs, their eyes closed as they relaxed in the sunshine. Both of them suddenly felt a shadow fall over them and two pairs of eye opened, looking up at the black-clad young man who was blocking their rays.

"You want somethin' Bleach Boy?" Faith asked, not sounding or looking impressed at his intrusion.

"Your mother's on the phone" he told his step-sister, "Yelling somethin' chronic about you and a lipstick she reckons you nicked" he said, waving his hand in an uninterested gesture, "Wants to talk to you about it"

Faith considered for a moment that Spike might be lying just to get some alone time with Buffy but she had stolen her mother's Harlot lipstick last week and mostly used it up, which would anger the older woman, especially if she was a little worse the wear for the booze when she realised.

"Fine" Faith said as she begrudgingly got up from the ground and headed inside. Spike watched her go and smirked to himself. He hadn't lied actually, his step-mother really was on the phone and yelling that she wanted to talk to Faithie, but only because he called her up in the first place and wound her up good and proper about her daughter. It was worth it to get some alone time with Buffy, he smiled as he looked down at the blonde.

"Guess it's just you and me then, luv" he said as he walked by her and leant on the frame behind her that held two swings and a pair of gymnastic rings.

"Looks like" Buffy agreed as she got to her feet, and brushed herself off as she walked over to where he was, taking a seat on the swing furthest from him, "I'm sorry about yesterday" she said, looking down at the ground for a moment and then forcing herself to meet his eyes, "I was kind of a bitch, and I guess you didn't mean to upset me"

"Never, pet" he assured her, "Upsetting you is the very last thing I'd want to do"

Buffy smiled at that, and found she had to look away again. Sometimes the way Spike looked at her was so intense, it was as if he were looking into her soul. It made her feel things she knew she shouldn't and so she avoided his gaze as much as possible when he was looking at her that way.

"So, I overheard a little of what you and Faith were talking about when you first came in" he admitted, "Your pom-pom waving getting you down, luv?" he asked with an annoying smirk as he grabbed the rings above his head and flipped himself upside down on them. Buffy watched, a little stunned as he hung that way for a while, then flipped right over and landed on his feet again.

"Well, if I ever get an injury amongst my squad I'll know who to call on for reserve" she smiled, her grin growing at the look that appeared on his face.

"Call me old-fashioned, luv, but cheering is strictly for you females" he told her, "Not exactly my thing"

"I guess not" Buffy smiled still, but it wained as she continued, "Still, guys can cheer, Angel was really good"

"I'll bet he was" Spike rolled his eyes as he came to stand behind the blonde, pushing the swing gently for her.

"You always do that" she sighed as she moved back and forth on the swing, "Every time I mention Angel you find a way to insult him. You don't even know him" she pointed out, turning to glance at him as the swing came backward and he pushed her forward once again.

"Don't have to know him, luv" Spike told her, "I know his type. The sort that behave the way he does, get what they want then piss off into the horizon, leaving you behind"

"He only went to college" she reminded him, "It's not exactly the other side of the world"

"That's just my point, pet" he said as he continued to push the swing, "If he were on the other side of the world you'd expect contact to be minimal. The git's a couple of miles down the road and he can't even be bothered to call you? Sorry, luv, but bloke's like him make me sick"

"Why should you even care?" she asked as she swung back again, surprised when she didn't go forward once again, instead Spike's strong hands gripped her waist and held her tight to him as she turned and looked up into his bright blue eyes.

"Cos he doesn't deserve you" he said softly as he stared down at her.

The intensity in his eyes scared Buffy half to death and his hands at her waist felt as if they were burning her skin even through the clothes she wore. There was nowhere to run and nothing she could say or do as he lowered his head, and his lips sought out her own. As wrong as she knew it was, Buffy didn't want to pull away and her eyes fell shut as Spike kissed her.

The contact lasted just a few seconds before Faith's voice could be heard from the house as she made her way back across the yard towards her friend and her step-brother. By the time she reached them, they had parted, Buffy's hand going sub-consciously to her lips as she tried to take in what had just happened.

Faith frowned as she glanced between the two of them, her eyes following Spike as he made some excuse and headed back into the house.

"Am I missing somethin' here?" she asked, not looking amused.

"Nothing" Buffy said, with shake of her head, an out and out lie of course, but she had no real explanation for the truth.

_To Be Continued...  
_


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N : Now we hit the Regional Cheerleading competition part of 'Bring It On', with a couple of twists of course...  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 9

"Woah" Faith gasped as she stepped into the building with the rest of the squad and looked around at the sight before her. Groups of girls in varying coloured cheerleading outfits, some practising their moves, some checking their hair and make-up, some even praying for success in this competition that seemed so important to them. Despite the fact she'd originally joined the squad out of a combination of temporary insanity and for a bet with her step-brother, Faith found she too was surprisingly eager to win this thing. Everybody had worked so hard, and she meant absolutely everybody, even Harmony and Glory who did their fair share of bitching and bickering. They still put in the hours and tried their best, they were so determined to win this thing.

"Nervous?" Buffy asked her friend as they looked around.

"Nah, you know me, B" Faith shrugged, "I'm five by five" she assured the blonde, though she would admit to herself at least she was a little nervous about screwing up. When she was competing in gymnastics the only person she could hurt or let down was herself. This was a team event, a totally new gig for Faith, and she was starting to feel the pressure just a little bit.

Over in the arena, the audience all took their seats and waited for the competition to really start. Spike had never felt so out of place in his life as he did in the centre row, crammed in between over-excited mothers and kids with ugly home made banners to cheer on their brothers and sisters in this apparent sport that was such a big deal to them. Spike wasn't much into any kind of sport, except proper football of course. Whether you could even call cheerleading a sport was another thing altogether but such debates as these were far from Spike's mind right now. Instead he was trying to decide if he was a bigger idiot for making this bet with Faith that they had going on, or if his real stupidity lie in his feelings for Buffy Summers.

What had started out as a game had changed so much and in such a short time. He'd been living in Sunnydale just a month and his soul purpose in getting to know Buffy was to win a bet he'd made with his step-sister. What had really happened was the little blonde had charmed him far more easily than he had her. He found he was actually falling in love with Buffy and what was worse, he didn't know what the hell to do about it, especially since it seemed she was not averse to his attraction to her. She had let him kiss her after all, just two days ago.

He hadn't seen her since, since the squad had got special dispensation from the Principal to skip any classes they felt necessary in order to help them win the Regional competition this Saturday. Spike wondered if it was absolutely necessary for Buffy to skip Bio yesterday, or if she was just afraid to face him, after all she had a boyfriend whom she had effectively cheated on by kissing him, no matter how much of a scumbag Angel had been this past month or more.

Of course, Spike had no idea that aforementioned scumbag was in fact sitting two rows in front of him. Angel had shown up, as promised, to the Regional Cheerleading competitions, knowing he had to keep Buffy happy if they were going to have any fun when she came up to college next year. UC Sunnydale was turning out to be a great place, just like High School but with the added bonuses of dorm rooms and easy drunken young women.

An announcers voice caught the attention of both Angel and Spike and the first squad came out in front of the audience, readying themselves to perform.

* * *

"Buffy, hey" said a voice behind her and the Captain of the Sunnydale Razorback Squad spun around to see Cordelia standing behind her.

"Cordy, hi" she smiled, "It totally never entered my head that you'd be here"

"It's kind of embarrassing really" Miss Chase grinned, "When the girls at Hyperion High heard I used to Captain the Razorbacks they just insisted I be their Captain too"

"So you're the old leader, huh?" Faith asked, looking distastefully at the obvious rich bitch before her.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Cordy checked, looking equally as unimpressed by the other brunette.

"Oh right" Buffy suddenly seemed to remember the two had never met, "Cordelia Chase this is Faith Lehane, our newest addition. Faith this is Cordy, the former Captain of the Sunnydale Razorbacks"

Neither brunette said anything and to be honest, from the way they were giving each other the evil eye, Buffy was heartily glad. Before either could think of something nasty to say or do, the announcer spoke again, telling the Hyperion Hornets to prepare themselves as they were up next. Cordy flounced away to confer with her team mates and give them a last minute pep talk as Buffy turned to Faith.

"Well, that was kinda hate at first sight" she smiled.

"I don't like girls like her is all" Faith shrugged, "She's so far up her own rich bitch ass, a damn contortionist would be proud"

Buffy laughed at that as she and her friend joined the other girls who were gathering to watch their old leader perform with her new team. They were up next and though they were all nervous they were confident too.

Standing by the edge of the performance space, Buffy peeked up at the audience and spotted Spike, sitting just behind her boyfriend. They both turned at the same time and saw her too and she smiled back at the pair of them, glad that neither of them knew who the other was, because that would only make things all the more awkward. When Angel blew a kiss towards her, Buffy knew she'd have to return the favour, although with Spike still looking her way she knew he'd probably get the wrong idea and think it was meant for him. In a moment of madness she did it anyway, unable to keep her eyes on the audience, afraid of the reactions she may have caused.

The announcer introduced the Hyperion Hornets just then and Cordy's new squad got into their starting formation. As the music began, Buffy's heart sank and she only felt more awful as she watched the routine her squad had learnt so carefully be performed by a rival team.

"What the hell...!" Faith exclaimed at her side as all eyes were trained on the grinning girls from Hyperion High. Every step, every throw, every flip was exactly the same as the routine the Sunnydale Razorbacks had used last year and planned to use again this year.

For three long, painful minutes the girls in burgundy and gold watched in horror as their routine was performed before their eyes by the other team in blue and white, Cordy right there in front, leading her squad with a huge grin on her face - she knew the trouble she was causing.

As the music came to an end and the girls held their finishing position, the crowd erupted in applause and cheers. The announcer thanked the squad and the girls ran off the opposite side of the 'stage', only Cordy sparing a glance and self-satisfied smirk at her former team-mates from Sunnydale High. Oh yeah, she knew what she had done.

"That bitch!" Glory snapped behind her Captain, "She so cannot do that!"

"We're going to look so stupid if we go out there and do the same routine" Harmony complained, hands on her hips.

"You _are_ so stupid" Faith snapped back at her, knowing that Buffy was in enough of a state without the two blonde bimbos doing their Staedler and Waldorf routine.

"What can we do?" Buffy thought aloud, turning to look at Faith, "We only have one routine that we know well enough, there's no going back"

"Then I guess we go with it" Faith shrugged, "See if we can't give it a little somethin' those whores can't" she said encouragingly as Willow and Xander nodded their agreement.

The announcer called for the Sunnydale Razorbacks to take their positions and they did just that, though many of them looked far from happy. As the music started up, and the squad began to dance, there wasn't a person in the building who's mouth didn't drop open wide in shock.

"Haven't we just seen this routine?" one of the judges asked another, recognising both the music and the moves as being identical to the previous squad.

Spike and Angel were both frowning, wondering what the hell was going on, as Cordelia stood on the sidelines with her giggling team, smiling with delight at how ridiculous she'd made her old team look. She knew they would probably win Regionals, maybe even Nationals, and without her. Making use of Daddy's cash and connections she'd ensured her new squad got to perform before Sunnydale High's own girls and boys, making the Razorbacks look like the cheaters!

As the music reached a crescendo and the performance was over, not a person in the audience applauded or cheered. Buffy felt sick as she ran from the performance space with Faith hot on her heels. Cordelia was such a bitch, she needed taking down a notch or two, but right now all the Captain of the Sunnydale Razorbacks wanted to do was cry. She'd worked so hard to get the squad ready for this competition and now it seemed as though it were all a waste of time.

Cordy had the good sense to get out of the way of Miss Summers as her temper went into overdrive. Buffy stalked through the building, hell-bent on finding her former friend and tearing her limb from limb, but Faith caught up to her before she had a chance.

"Yo, B, slow down" she yelled as she grabbed her arm.

"No way! No frickin' way!" Buffy yelled back, "Cordelia made us look like idiots out there, and she knew it too!" she seethed.

"Yeah" Faith agreed, "but, and I can't actually believe I'm sayin' this, but slammin' her face into the ground ain't the way to fix this" she told her friend, who should have known that already, it was just her temper taking over that made her forget herself.

Buffy sighed, knowing what Faith said made sense, but also knowing she'd really love to do that face-slamming thing to Cordelia. Before she had a chance to say anything else, the head judge of the competition appeared and drew Buffy's attention away.

"Miss Summers, I think we need to have a conversation..." he began, shooting Faith a look that told her she should go away. Rolling her eyes she walked a few steps, almost running right into her step-brother.

"What the bloody hell's goin' on here then?" Spike asked as he glance at his step-sister then over at where Buffy was pleading her case with the head judge.

"Seems the Captain of the Hyperion squad used to head up Sunnyhell's team" Faith explained, "She totally screwed B over, took the routine with her to her new LA school, knowin' damn well we'd still use it"

"Nasty bitch" Spike spat. He didn't care much about cheerleading but he did care about Buffy, and she wasn't looking at all happy right now.

Across the room the head judge told Buffy that although there was nothing in the rules to say two squads couldn't present the same routine, it certainly wasn't something they condoned. However, the Sunnydale Razorbacks were guaranteed a place in Nationals, due to the fact they were the current champions. Buffy was warned though that her team must not show up with the same routine - if they did, there would be trouble.

Although the blonde was pleased to know the team hadn't lost their chance to win Nationals, the fact she had to come up with a new routine for the squad certainly didn't thrill her.

"Buffy" she heard her name behind her and turned to see Spike coming towards her. The sight of him brought a smile to her face, but her expression quickly changed when some girls happened to block Spike's path and Buffy was spun into the arms of her boyfriend who had approached from behind.

"Angel" she forced the smile back on her face, though in all honesty she had been kind of more excited to see Spike. She pushed away that silly thought and concentrated on the man whose arms she was in.

"Hey, what the hell happened out there?" he asked her.

"I don't know" Buffy sighed, "Cordelia decided to screw us over I guess, and now I have to come up with a whole new routine and get the squad ready for Nationals... Kind of a pressure thing" she said, glad of the hug Angel gave her as she hugged him back, resting her head on his chest.

"It's okay, baby" he assured her, kissing the top of her head, "You did your best, nobody can do better than that" he told her, "I was talking to the other girls, Glory and Harmony can take over for you, ease the pressure some..."  
"What!" Buffy's head came up so fast she almost smacked Angel in the jaw.

"Buffy, you said yourself it's a lot of pressure" he reminded her, "You're a great cheerleader, maybe the best cheerleader" he told her, moving his hands to her face, "But, I dunno, maybe you're just not cut out for being Captain"

Tears welled up in Buffy's eyes and she pulled free of Angel's grasp.

"How dare you?" she asked him incredulously, "How can you stand there and... You know how much I wanted to be Captain, how much I love that I got the job, and now you're telling me maybe I'm not good enough to do it?"

"Buffy, you're taking this all the wrong way" Angel said with a shake of his head, but the blonde wouldn't hear it.

"No, no, I really don't think that I am" she said angrily, blinking back tears as she stormed away from him, pushing through crowds of other young girls and boys, desperate to get away.

She rushed through the open doors and out into the fresh air which hit her like a smack in the face. Breathing deeply and trying to be calm she was glad to hear Faith's voice coming from around the corner and almost made it into her friend's sight before she realised what she was saying and stopped to listen instead.

"I'm saying, B's my friend now, man" the brunette said loudly, "She's the decent kind, she doesn't treat me like dirt or a freak of whatever. Spike, I ain't gonna let her get hurt, okay?"

"I hear you, pet" Spike answered her, and Buffy frowned as she listened to the continuing conversation, wondering what on earth the step-siblings were talking about.

"So the bet is off?" Faith checked, "I mean, I'm gonna stick with the cheering, can't leave B high and dry, but you, you leave her alone right? No more putting the moves on her, the bet is officially over"

"It's over" Spike confirmed, opening his mouth to continue but never getting the chance as the sound of a stifled sob caught his attention. Both he and Faith peered around the corner and were shocked to see Buffy hurrying away, clearly very upset.

"Oh, bugger"

_To Be Continued...  
_


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N : Need to go through a little bad patch before we get back to the good stuff - sorry but thats just the way it goes! A happy Spuffy ending is of course iminent - just give it a little time!  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 10

"Damn!" Faith yelled as she realised her latest best friend had just overheard the conversation between herself and her step-brother. Of course to Buffy it sounded much worse than it really was. A bet had been made a month ago between Faith and Spike and it all centered around Buffy. He was trying to make her love him, whilst she was using the cheerleading squad to prove a point. Now the blonde knew the truth it threw a rather large spanner in the workings of the Faith and Buffy friendship and whatever might've been developing betwen Buffy and Spike.

"Buffy!" the bleached blond called, making to go after her.

"No way, man" Faith snapped, pulling him back, "You caused enough damage" she told him as she pushed passed him and chased Buffy into the building.

She may have been playing the part of cheerleader for a bet at first, but she'd actually found she really kind of enjoyed it now, and her friendship with the Captain of the squad was real enough. Buffy was the first decent friend she'd had since she was in first grade and the thought of losing that stung somewhat. Of course some of it was her own fault, but Spike was to blame too, and it was easier right now to be angry at her step-brother than at herself.

"Buffy, slow down!" she called as she pushed through crowds of girls to catch up with her.

"Why?" the blonde asked suddenly swinging around to face her so-called friend, "So you can tell me it's not how it sounded? That you didn't make some bet with your brother about him... seducing me or whatever!" she yelled, the crowds aroudn them falling silent as they watched the scene play out.

"It's not as clean cut as that, B" Faith shook her head, "Yeah, so me and Spike made a stupid bet about me being on the squad and him getting you to like him, but that's all it was, a stupid bet, and I was just tellin' him it's all off"

"And why's that Faith?" Buffy asked, folding her arms over her chest angrily, "Because the squad looked stupid today? You're just gonna walk out on us, and hey, I actually kinda liked Spike, he might've won your little bet there"

"This ain't about winnin' B" the brunette told her, getting just as angry now, "You think you're so damn special? You just happened to be the loser we picked on!"

"Screw you, Lehane!" Buffy spat, hating the fact that tears were welling up in her eyes as she spotted Spike behind his step-sister, "Screw both of you" she said before hurrying away and this time they both let her go. Spike would have run after her again but Faith stopped him, it was quite clear that now was not the time.

"Bollocks" he cursed and his step-sister looked at him oddly.

"Why do you even care about this, BleachBoy?" she asked him, "She was my damn friend, all you lost is one good lay"

"What the hell do you know about it, Lehane?" he yelled back at her, turning to walk away, but Faith caught a handful of his leather coat and pulled him back.

"You like her, for real?" she checked, brown furrowing even further.

"Yeah" he admitted softly, with a nod, "Damn me, but I bloody do"

* * *

"You sure you're okay, Buff?" Xander checked as he pulled his car up outside her house.

"I'll survive" she nodded, her tears long over but the red rims around her eyes giving away the fact that she'd been terribly upset.

The stress of preparing for Regionals, only to be be made to look like a fool when her team followed the Hyperion Hornets with the exact same routine, that had been bad enough. Then to find out that not only had Faith joined the squad and pretended to be her friend for a bet, but that Spike, who she really believed had feelings for her, was also only pretending for the sake of a deal with his step-sister.

When Angel had told her she maybe wasn't good enough to be Captain of the cheerleaidng squad, Buffy had been angry and upset, but she could've dealt. Lately she'd gotten used to him not being around, and Spike amply filled the space her boyfirned left and then some. He was all that Angel had been, gorgeous and sweet and funny, and yet so much more than that too. He seemed to understand her, he wanted to be there for her, plus he had that bad boy angle that, as superficial as it seemed, was always a plus.

"If you need to talk later, you can always call me" Willow said kindly from the back seat, "I'm not sure how much help I'll be but I listen real well" she smiled.

"Thanks, Will" Buffy managed a half smile back to her, "Both of you, really, you've been great today. Now I think I just really need some sleep" she sighed, unfastening her seatbelt, grabbing her bag, and getting out of the car.

"I'll see you on Monday" she said through the open front window, "Drive safe"

"See ya, Buff" Xander smiled back at her as he pulled away from the kerb and drove off.

With a deep sigh, Buffy turned to walk down the path towards her house. She was surprised to find a figure on the porch steps as she approached.

"Buffy" Spike said her name as he scrambled to his feet, a small bunch of flowers in one hand, a cigarette in the other which he quickly dropped to the ground and stubbed out under his boot.

"I have nothing to say to you" Buffy told him swiftly, heading straight for her front door without hardly looking at him, at least that was the plan. Spike stepped in front of her, squeezing between her and the front door.

"Well, I have somethin' to say to you" he told her, his eyes looking right into her own. As mad as she was at him, as hurt as she felt by what he'd done, she was still hypnotised somehow by the those bright blue orbs, and she nodded slowly.

"Fine" she said with a sigh, "You have something to say, then say it, and leave" she told him, glancing away because she couldn't stand to meet his eyes any longer.

Convinced that Buffy was not the type to double cross him, Spike moved away from the front door, trusting she wouldn't rush through it the moment he took a step. She stayed where she was and turned when he did, so they were facing each other, both sideways on to the house.

"Right then" Spike began, taking a breath, "I s'pose I ought to start with an apology, though honestly I'm not sure what I'm sayin' sorry for..."

"Huh!" Buffy made a little sound of indignation, which caught his attention, "You don't know why you should be sorry!" she asked incredulously.

"Well, no" Spike admitted, talking quickly so that Buffy didn't have a chance to explode into some anti-him speech which he could see was on the tip of her tongue, "I see why you might think I should, but luv, you don't know the whole story"

"What have you ever told me but stories?" she asked with a humourless laugh, "All that crap about Angel, how he wasn't good enough for me, and all the time it was for a stupid bet" she reminded him, "You don't even like me"

"Yes, I damn well do!" he belowed back at her, "I do soddin' like you, reckon I more than like you, and that's what I was about to tell Faithie when you came round the bloody corner!"

Buffy was stunned into silence by his words but not for long. As nice as it might be to think that what he was saying now was true, how could she trust him, when clearly all he'd told her up to now had been lies.

"Why are you botheirng with this, Spike?" she asked, shaking her head, the remnants of pained laughter still in her voice as tears crept down her cheeks, "Was that little talk you to had a set up like everything else? Was I supposed to find out about the bet? Is it part of something else?"

"No, it bleedin' isn't!" he yelled, getting just as angry as she was now, "Why can't you just accept what I'm tryin' to tell you, Buffy, I really..."

"Because I don't care!" she told him loudly, but it didn't make it any less of a lie, "I don't care what you think, or what you feel, or anything. You and your bitch of a step-sister both played me for fun. What can you possibly say that'll change that?" she said angrily, suddenly turning to her door, unlocking it and slamming inside before Spike had a chance to say anything else.

"Bloody hell!" he swore once again as he kicked the wooden upright nearest to him, a stupid thing he realised when his foot throbbed painfully.

* * *

For the first time, Buffy was glad about her mother's business trip for the gallery that took her out of town this weekend. When Joyce had originally broken the news about the trip she couldn't possibly get out of, Buffy had been so upset that her own mother would not be there to support the Razorbacks squad in their first event with herself as Captain. Now Buffy was glad to know she was alone in the house, with no-one to ask her for an explanation as to why she was crying. Of course she could have passed it off as tears over the competition and what Cordelia had done, but it would have been less simple to hide the yelling that had occurred between herself and Spike.

He'd hurt her, so had Faith, but at least she understood about that. There was pain inside her that came from knowing the girl she'd lately thought of as a best friend was in fact play acting at being her friend as well as using the squad for the sake of a bet. What didn't make sense to Buffy was why Spike's betryal hurt so much. After all, she really hadn't encouraged his advances. She'd told him time and again how she had a boyfriend already and that she'd never think about being unfaithful to him in any way. Okay, so there had been that one kiss that she probbaly should've stopped sooner, but it wasn't as if she were in love with the guy or anything... was she?

The idea of it seemed ridiculous and yet thinking over all that had happened, each Bio lession she'd spent in Spike's company, the night she stayed over at the house with him and Faith, up to today when he'd been there to support the squad at Regioinals and he'd waved to her from the crowd, now all of it was almost too painful to recall.

Though Angel had upset her tonight, Buffy wasn't sure what that meant for the two of them. She suspected some of the rumours she'd been hearing were true, that perhaps he really did have a woman, or more than one, at college that were keeping him busy. He didn't call, he didn't visit, she marked it down as a miracle that he even showed up at the competition today. The final nail in the coffin was when he said she might not be cut out for the Captian's job, and it made Buffy's blood boil to remember that conversation. How dare he presume to think he could overrule her, and install Glory and Harmony as leaders in her place, just because he felt like it!

"Buffy?" Spike's voice through the door made her jump a little, since she'd been so lost in thought, "Look, I know you're there, luv, I can see you moving through the glass" he told her and she shunted away from the panels in the door he may have spotted her through. Still she remianed with her back flat to the surface of the door, interested in what he might have to say in spite of everything. She suspected that inexplicable feeling she had for him was to blame.

"Whether you want to listen or not, well, there's not a damn thing I can do about it" Spike sighed, "But I want you to know, pet, Faithie's not the villain in this. I wish you'd believe I'm not either but I don't see that happenin' any time soon" he said sadly, "My point is, don't punish Faith. Yeah, we made a stupid bet, it was wrong, but she was the one tellin' me it should be called off because she likes you, pet. She'd kill me if she knew I was sayin' all this but, well, you're the first proper friend she's had in a good few years I reckon. I'd hate to see her lose you now"

Buffy stood on the other side of the door, wiping tears from her cheeks and feeling wretched. She was still mad at both Spike and Faith, but in all honesty she knew she was going to miss them terribly if she cut them both out of her life all of a sudden. She so wanted to forgive them, and yet she didn't really think they deserved it.

A huge yawn escaped her and she heard a whisper of goodnight through the door along with Spike's footsteps as he walked away from the house. Right now Buffy needed a good night's sleep, and she hoped in the morning, things might be clearer.

_To Be Continued...  
_


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N : Apologies for the quality of the previous chapter with regard to spelling, etc. I seem to have posted the un-beta-ed version and now cannot find a beta-ed version. Eventually I will get it fixed! In the meantime, here's the latest...  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 11

Buffy wasn't sure where this morning's confidence had come from. She guessed it was one of those mind over matter situations. If she told herself that nothing was going to bother her today then nothing would, and so far it seemed to be working. Her Mom had arrived home late last night and immediately asked how the competition went on Saturday. Without tears or tantrums, Buffy explained what Cordelia had done and how mad that had made her. She never mentioned Faith or Spike, she told herself she didn't have time to let them get to her, after all she was Captain of the Sunnydale Razorbacks cheerleading squad, the very same squad that had to come up with a new, fresh, innovative routine and learn it all perfectly in just a few short weeks. That had to be her priority right now, nothing and no-one else would be getting in her way any time soon.

Joyce pulled the car up outside the school on Monday morning and wished her daughter a good day. Buffy took a deep breath as she got out of the car and faced the school building. No matter what happened she was going to smile and keep pushing through. She was stronger and smarter than people gave her credit for, and she would show them too.

Buffy immediately headed for the main notice-board and pinned up a sign, calling for an emergency meeting of the squad at lunch-time. She proceeded to tack similar notices in any other appropriate places, including the girls locker room, finishing up just before the bell rang for first period. She was happy to get to her first class of the day without running into either Faith or Spike, but when she did have to see them she would deal, at least, that's what she told herself.

* * *

Buffy took a deep breath and pushed open the doors to the gym. She'd been standing out there for the past five minutes, watching her squad sitting up on the bleachers, talking animatedly about one thing or another. Buffy was sure she was one of the main topics of conversation today, and for more than one reason too - the copied routine, her break-up with Angel, the scene she and Faith had made at Regionals. Speaking of Faith, the brunette was right at the front of the group, by herself. Seemed she had been segregated yet again, and worse now than before after what she'd done. Buffy thought back to what Spike had yelled through her door on Saturday night and though she knew she shouldn't she felt a little bad for Faith.

"Buffy!" Harmony grinned as she ran down towards the other blonde, with Glory at her side.

"Angel told us everything" Glory smiled in a way that Buffy assumed was supposed to be friendly but in fact scared her a little, "We know you want us to take over, for a while at least"

"I don't care what Angel told you" Buffy shook her head, arms folded across her chest, "I'm still Captain of this squad and..."

"But you, y'know, resigned or whatever" Harmony snapped, "You can't just like un-resign"

"I never resigned, Harmony" Buffy explained, "Angel tried to do it for me, but he can't. I'm the only one who can give up my Captaincy and I don't want to"

"Well, maybe we want you to" Glory said smartly, "Maybe this squad doesn't want a Captain like you anymore"

"Is that how you feel?" Buffy checked, confidence waning just a little as her eyes swept over the assembled group of girls and boys, "Do you not want me to be Captain anymore?" she asked, "You're not answering me!" she pointed out, anger edging her voice.

"Cos we don't know what's happening, Buff" Xander told her carefully, "Everything's gone kinda unexplainy since Regionals" he shrugged, as Willow who sat beside him nodded her head in agreement.

"Okay" the Captain nodded, "You want an explanation, then here it is" she began, encouraging Harmony and Glory to sit down again which they reluctantly did, "Seems our wonderful ex-Captain, Miss Chase, decided she wanted some praise for her new school, and the only way she felt she could get it was to screw us over" she explained, "Now we could get mad about it, but honestly, there's no point. Getting mad about a situation doesn't change the fact that you find yourself in it, it doesn't change the fact that somebody did something wrong and it hurt you" she said, looking more so at Faith than anybody else, her meaning not lost on the brunette who couldn't meet her friends gaze.

"So, she gets away with it?" Willow asked cautiously, glad when Buffy shook her head.

"No, she doesn't, Will" the blonde assured her, "Cordelia thinks she's a winner because she made us a look a little stupid at Regionals, but at Nationals, we're going to slay the Hyperion Hornets with our new routine" she smiled.

"New routine?!" Harmony and Glory squeaked in unison.

"No, no way!" the latter said, shaking her head wildly, "There is no way we can learn a whole new routine by Nationals, it'd be like cheer-suicide"

"That is so true" Harmony agreed, looking annoyed, "They should change their routine, not us!"

"Chances are they'll have to change theirs too" Buffy pointed out to her, "The judges were not happy about us having the same performance, they blamed both squads, we both have to change. If we go to Nationals with this routine we'll be disqualified before we even start"

"So we forfeit this year" Glory shrugged, "There's no way in hell we can pull this off"

"Put a sock in it, Blondie, you're drivin' me nuts!" Faith yelled suddenly, "Have a little confidence in your team, okay?"

"Ooh, Harley Girl has an opinion on cheerleading now?" Glory asked with a look, "Weird since she's only been on the squad like five minutes, and is the weakest link we have"

"Shut up, both of you!" Buffy commanded when the two looked like they were seconds away from trading blows, "We need everybody, and we're all going to have to work hard if we're going to pull this off" she told them, "I know it won't be easy, I know it's not an ideal situation but we could do this, I believe we could win Nationals" she said, looking around the whole crowd, "I guess the real question now is, who's with me?"

There was silence for a few moments as the squad looked to each other, hoping somebody else would answer first. Nobody was particularly surprised when Faith got to her feet looking as if she was going to walk out.

"I ain't afraid of hard work" she shrugged, moving to stand beside Buffy, "I believe in this squad too" she admitted, "And yeah, okay, so I never cheered before I came to Sunnydale, I ain't no expert, I know that, but I think we're damn good. I think we can pull this off"

"Me too" Xander smiled as he stood up.

"And me" Willow agreed, the next to get to her feet.

Before Buffy had a chance to react she found her whole squad was on their feet, all but Harmony and Glory.

"C'mon, girls" she said with a smile she couldn't hide, "You know we can't do this without you"

The pair glanced at each other and then sighed in unison.

"That is true" Harmony nodded.

"Fine, we're in" Glory agreed and Buffy grinned, pleased to have at least got the support of her team back. That was one less thing to worry about.

* * *

"Yo, B" Faith called as the squad filtered out of the gym towards the end of lunch.

Though everybody had been involved in the discussions about the new routine, Faith and Buffy had yet to have a proper one-on-one conversation since Saturday at Regionals, and even then that really had been more of a raving argument than a real talk.

"Faith" the blonde greeted her supposed friend coolly as they stood facing each other in the halls, Buffy with her arms folded over her chest, already looking more than a little annoyed.

"Look, B, I just wanted to say, I'm totally behind you on the whole new routine thing, okay?" the brunette explained.

"Thanks" Buffy nodded once, "but you said that already" she reminded her as she turned to walk away.

"So that's it, huh?" Faith called as she hurried to catch up with her, "You find out me and my idiot brother made some bet about you and now you're just never gonna talk to either of us again?"

"I have to talk to you" Buffy sighed, "You for cheerleading, Spike in class. I know I can't avoid it" she said as they stopped walking by the lockers and turned to face each other again, "but I don't have to like either of you"

With that Buffy walked away, leaving Faith behind, staring after her, kicking herself for losing the first good friend she'd had in years, and over something so stupid as a bet.

* * *

"Hello, luv" Spike smiled at Buffy as she came into Biology class at the end of the day, his attempt at a grin fading when he realised she was not at all pleased to see him. Of course he hadn't really expected her to walk in and snog his face off, or tell him how wonderful he was. She knew the truth now, that this situation had all started as a stupid bet. What she didn't know of course was that his feelings, however faked to begin with, were as real now as any feelings he'd ever had for anyone.

"Spike" she greeted him as coolly as she had Faith. Having to sit beside him each day in class was going to be awkward if she was refusing to talk to him, so instead she had decided she could be civil if he could, and that was that.

"I wanted a chance to talk to you, pet, I..." he began, but she interrupted swiftly.

"We don't have anything to talk about, Spike" she told him, keeping her eyes forward at all times, "You were playing me for a bet, it's sick and disgusting, but it's true" she said simply, "Now I know about it and it's over, we don't need to talk about it anymore"

"Yeah, but..." Spike tried again, but she still wouldn't hear his excuses.

"We don't need to talk about it anymore" she repeated, "Whatever either of us thought the other felt, we were wrong. So it's done with, okay?" she said, sparing him a glance.

Spike was prevented from answering her verbally as the teacher called the class to order. He simply nodded once, and Buffy averted her eyes back to the chalkboard. Though she seemed tough and resilient and completely calm on the outside, she only wished she really felt that way. On the inside, she was crying a river.

_To Be Continued...  
_


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N : Since the movie is headed towards an end, so is this fic - just a couple more chapters to go, I think!  
_(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)_**

Chapter 12

"Five, six, seven, eight, and one!" Buffy yelled as the Sunnydale Razorbacks cheerleading squad worked on their routine, guys lifting girls onto their shoulders to the counting of their Captain.

"Argh!" Harmony yelled as she lost her balance and Ben dropped her awkwardly back to the floor, "You stupid asshole!" she cursed at him, smacking him across the arm, "You almost dropped me on my head!"

"Maybe it'd knock some sense in" Faith muttered, but was mostly drowned out by Glory storming over.

"Don't start with my brother just because you have no sense of balance" she screeched at Harmony.

"I have balance!" the other blonde shot back, "Your lame brother just shouldn't be on this squad!"

"Maybe I'd be able to hold you better if you didn't weigh so much" Ben threw in, causing a couple of the other guys to snigger, one even giving him a high five.

"Okay, that is enough!" Buffy demanded everybody's attention be on her, "I am so sick of all this fighting, it's not good for the team and it wastes my time and yours"

The whole room felt silent at her command, though the girls continued to glare at each other.

"Nationals are just a couple of weeks away" Buffy reminded her squad, "We have to develop and learn this routine so it is second nature, so we don't even have to think about it, it's just perfect. Are we all clear on that?"

A murmured response of 'yes' was heard, though just barely.

"I'd get more enthusiasm from the Chess Club!" their Captain complained, "I thought we were cheerleaders. Are we all clear?" she tried again, and this time there response was much louder, echoing around the gym.

"Okay then" Buffy smiled, glad to be getting somewhere "From the top..."

Outside the doors, a face watched unseen through the glass. Nobody seemed particularly bothered by the young man staring in at the cheerleaders practising, after all, what teenage boy wasn't drawn to an activity where fit young women wore skimpy outfits and shook what they had for everyone to see. Of course that wasn't the real reason why Spike had his nose pressed to the glass. Mostly he was there to watch Buffy, hoping that he might get a chance to talk to her properly when practice was over.

It was almost a month now since the Regional cheering competition, the day when Buffy had found out about the bet Spike and Faith had made. Whilst his step-sister's side of the bargain was only to stick with the cheerleading squad all year, Spike's own task had been to make Buffy Summers fall in love with him, something that had seemed to be fairly simple as feelings easily developed between the pretty blonde and himself. What Spike had not bargained on was that he would fall so hard and fast for Buffy at the same time as her falling for him. Words of love had never been spoken by either party, and yet Spike felt it, and often wondered if, before she'd discovered his betrayal, Buffy might have felt the same.

Each time she came into the classroom for Biology and took her assigned seat beside him, he would greet her with polite words and a smile. Though she almost always answered him, he never got more than a curt nod and short greeting out of her before silence reigned. Somehow Buffy always managed to get to class moments before the teacher started the lesson, ensuring that there was no time for talking, and hurried out of the room sufficiently quickly at the end so a conversation then was not an option either.

It killed Spike to be that close to her and not even be able to talk to her. He'd been round to her house a few times in the evening or at weekends. He considered knocking on her door, trying to talk to her, but he'd said all there was to say and she was clearly not interested. Whilst he assumed she felt something for him, he might be wrong. She did a wonderful impression of a person who didn't care at all, and that was almost worse than if she'd been mad at him. At least she would have been showing some emotion towards him if she was yelling and raving and calling him every derogatory name known to man, as it was she barely acknowledged he existed and Spike truly hated that.

As cheerleading practise ended and the girls and boys piled out of the gym, Spike waited with his back against the wall for Buffy to exit. She came out last right after Faith who stopped and waited to see what would happen, till Spike gave her a pleading look and she eventually walked away shaking her head. She couldn't even get her friend to talk to her, there was simply no way Spike was going to get anywhere with her. After all, he'd set out to use her way more in this bet than Faith had.

"Buffy!" he called after her as she blanked him and carried on walking down the hall, "Bloody hell, woman, what does it take to get a conversation out of you these days!" he said, frustradely as he gave chase, catching hold of her arm and trying to pull her back. Buffy spun around, tearing her wrist fee of his grip.

"Don't touch me" she told him, more sadly than with anger in her tone, "Please Spike, just leave me alone"  
"'S what I have been doin'" he pointed out, "Tryin' to give you some time and space and all that rot, hoping maybe after a while you'd realise I'm not this big bad person you seem to think I am"

"Oh yeah, you're a regular saint" Buffy said sarcastically, folding her arms across her chest, "Guys like you, making bets about getting girls to like you, you deserve medals"

"I know I did a bleedin' stupid thing, and I apologised for that" he reminded her, "but tell me once when I didn't treat you decent" he challenged her, "Which is more than you're bloody boyfriend can say"

"Do not drag Angel into this" Buffy warned him, "He is so none of your business"

"Maybe not, but he's still yours, isn't he?" Spike countered, "After all he's done, luv, all the rumours goin' around about him, the fact he never bothers to call you, the way he tried to turn over your cheerleading gig to those blonde tarts... After all that, you still love him, don't you?"

"Yes" she said, with a little less force than she would have liked.

The fact was, Spike was right. She'd hardly see Angel since Regionals a month ago, and he didn't sound overly genuine when he apologised for handing over the reigns of the squad to Glory and Harmony behind her back. It was very hard to say you still loved someone when so much had changed and you'd been apart from them so long.

"Y'know I did hope at least all this might've made you see some sense about that git, luv" Spike shook his head sadly as he walked away, "Maybe you're just not as smart as I thought"

That stung Buffy more than she'd like and certainly got her thinking. Of course she wasn't some airhead who let her boyfriend walk all over her, at least she didn't think she was, and yet Angel hadn't really been there for her lately. She barely saw him and she'd had it from more than one source that he wasn't exactly remaining faithful to her whilst at college. She didn't want to believe it but she couldn't help herself, it was starting to seem more and more likely to be true.

* * *

Angel was in the shower when there was a knock at the door. He didn't hear it himself but the girl laid out on his bed, barely dressed, decided she should probably answer it.

"Hi, can I help you?" she asked, leaning in the door way with a grin on her face.

"I doubt it" Buffy snorted as she glanced down at what the other blonde wasn't wearing, only underwear and what appeared to be one of Angel's shirts haphazardly pulled on over the top, "Is Angel around?" she asked just as the man himself appeared.

"Darla, what are you...? Buffy!" he gasped, eyes going wide as he spotted his other girlfriend on the other side of the door.

"Oh, so you're the famous Buffy" Darla grinned, "I've heard so much about you" she grinned, as she slid an arm up around Angel's shoulders. He himself was still damp from the shower and wearing only a towel around his waist.

"That's weird" Buffy replied to Darla, although she looked directly at Angel, "I haven't heard a thing about you, but then I guess all I need to do is go read the bathroom walls" she smiled sweetly, as Darla looked ready to kill, crush, destroy.

"By the way, Angel" his younger girlfriend continued to smile as she gazed up at him and sighed, "See the thing is, as much as I loved you, and as great as you were at cheerleading, you're an asshole" she said flatly, "and I hope you and your whore are very happy together, cos from this moment on, I'm not your girlfriend anymore" she said simply, before turning on her heel and walking away.

"Buffy, sweetheart, come on!" Angel called after her, but was prevented from chasing her by his state of undress. When he turned back to look at Darla she was trying to stifle a grin, despite the insults that had been thrown her way - she was used to them after all.

"You were a cheerleader?" she chuckled as she looked Angel up and down, "Oh, I am so out of here" she told him as she quickly pulled on her pants and buttoned the shirt she was wearing before disappearing down the hall, leaving Angel alone and bewildered.

* * *

Buffy felt surprisingly good as she headed for school the next day, despite having broken up with her boyfriend the night before. It might have been more upsetting if he'd dumped her, or if they'd actually spent any time together this past month or more. As it was, Buffy had seen very little of Angel and after the first week or so had coped just fine without him. She actually found she was missing Spike's attention more, not that he was any the less eager to talk to her or spend time with her than he had been before, but without her joining in they couldn't have much of a conversation, and since she stopped hanging out with Faith she had no excuse to be over at their house.

She stared across the quad at the pair she'd been thinking of as they walked and talked together. A potential best friend and boyfriend, she hated that they'd wrecked all that by letting slip what they really were - liars and betrayers. As they got closer to her, Buffy and Faith caught each others gaze and the brunette smiled. Though she got a small effort at a grin in return, it wasn't a genuine happy expression.

"Hey" Buffy called to them suddenly as they went by.

Both Spike and Faith were pleasantly surprised to have her calling to them and turned back.

"Not that it's any of your business" the blonde said haughtily, "but... I broke up with Angel last night. You were right, Spike, he was cheating on me" she admitted.

"I'm sorry, luv" Spike told her sincerely, "Sorry he was messing you around, but bloody glad you dropped the bugger. He never deserved you, even less so than I did" he told her, before turning and walking away.

Faith soon followed him and Buffy watched them go, wondering if she'd made a terrible mistake. Not about dumping Angel of course, that might be one of the smartest things she'd ever done, but when it came to Spike and Faith, she wondered if they'd meant to hurt her as much as they had. Maybe she was letting this go on too long. She couldn't stay angry forever, they both seemed so genuinely sorry, and they hadn't known her when they made the bad judgement call of making a bet about her.

With a sigh and a shake of her head, Buffy obeyed the ringing of the school bell and headed for class. For now at least things would remain the same. She had more important things to worry about than Spike and Faith and what they may or may not be guilty of. She had a cheer squad to lead to victory in a National tournament, and that had to be her priority right now.

_To Be Continued..._


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N : I'm afraid to say the end is nigh on this particular story, but I promise when it does finish it'll be on a Spuffy note!  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc.- see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 13

"Guys that was perfect" Buffy enthused, grinning like an idiot as the girls and boys of the Sunnydale Razorback cheerleading squad congratulated themselves on a job well done. Though Buffy was a great Captain, always encouraging them and praising them when they did well, lately they'd been struggling terribly with the new routine for Nationals and with just over a week to go things were getting desperate. Finally it seemed they'd nailed the routine and they were evidently proud of themselves.

"A wonderful performance, I'm sure" said a male voice and the whole crowd in the gym turned to the doors to see Principal Snyder striding towards Buffy, "Miss Summers, I need a word with you"

"Yes, sir" she obeyed, following him out into the hallway beyond the double-doors. The rest of the squad waited patiently for her to come back, some muttering and whispering about what they might be talking about. Maybe Buffy was in trouble for something, though most knew her to be pretty straight-laced and therefore doubted it were true. Others worried Snyder had a problem of some kind with the squad, though it was unlikely since he had been supporting them so far, admittedly not really understanding their so-called sport but eager to get his hands on the trophy and large cheque that the school would get should the Razorbacks win the National cheerleading competition.

When Buffy come back into the gym, alone and looking crest-fallen, Faith was the first to ask what was up.

"We got trouble or somethin'?" she checked, looking genuinely concerned as the squad gathered around their Captain, eagerly awaiting her answer.

"Principal Snyder has a problem, which has now become our problem" she said, face blank and tone flat as she herself tried to properly take in the news before she passed it on to her fellow cheerleaders.

"Snyder has a problem?" Glory snickered, "Yeah, his baldness mostly"

"Shut up, Glory!" Buffy suddenly snapped angrily, "This is a major problem!" she told the assembled group loudly, "The school's budget was handled by some people who clearly failed Math. Basically, there isn't enough money to send the squad to Nationals"

Gasps and cries of indignation filtered through the gym, and as usual Faith spoke loudest.

"What the frickin' hell, B?!" she exclaimed, "Can they just do that?"

"Apparently" Buffy nodded, "It's not like we have no money at all but nowhere near enough" she sighed, "There is one upside, but it's small" she admitted, "If we can raise the rest of the cash then we can still go to Nationals. So, any fund-raising ideas?"

"Why don't you ask Blonde and Blonder over here" Faith suggested, "It's not like they couldn't donate somethin'. You ever seen more designer crap on two people?"

"Uh, excuse me, Miss Dykey-Harley-Chick!" Harmony complained, "Just because fashion means nothing to you does not mean you can say stuff about us"

"Yeah" Glory agreed, "What, do we look like we have ATM stamped on our foreheads?"

"No, just Made In Dorksville stamped on your ass" her brother Ben shot at her, earning himself a smack in the shoulder which he barely felt.

"For God sake, shut up!" Buffy yelled, bringing order to the group once again, "Look, this situation should be bringing us together, not tearing us apart" she pointed out, "Glory, Harmony, if either of you could get us some kind of donations from your parents that would be awesome, we would be so grateful"

"I guess we could ask" Glory conceded.

"Maybe" Harmony agreed, "But only because we so have to go to Nationals and kick the Hyperions Hornets asses!" she said firmly.

"Absolutely" Buffy agreed with a smile, "In the meantime, do we have anymore ideas to raise funds?" she asked, and was pleased to find they really did.

* * *

"This is so sad" Faith shook her head as she stepped out of the building with a very shy Willow at her side, both of them dressed only in red and black bikinis receptively, "Look at all those guys, their cars barely need cleaning" she pointed out the long line of customers beyond the sign that said Car Wash. This was one of the ideas voted the best for raising funds for Nationals. All the cheerleaders that were available would spend the next two Saturdays washing cars of anyone in town who would pay fifteen dollars, and that was a whole lot of people when those cheerleaders were half naked, highly athletic girls and guys.

"Come on, girls and boys, lets get this show on the road" Buffy smiled as she flipped on the tape player and music blared around the area, as cars were pulled into spaces and soap and water began to fly. Wet sponges that should be used for cleaning were thrown at peoples heads and hoses meant for rinsing down cars, soaked a few cheerleaders that ran screaming from the spray. It was all done in good spirits and money was being raised pretty easily.

Faith was a little surprised when she turned around and all of sudden spotted a familiar bleached blond head a few feet away. With a frown she put down her sponge and wandered over.

"Well, luv, don't you look... oh, what's the word" he said, pretending to think about it, "Oh yeah, slutty"

"Asshole" Faith shot back with half a smile, she knew he was only messing with her, "What the hell are you doing here, you don't even have a car?" she asked him.

"Convinced Dad to lend me the DeSoto since I told him I could get it a professional cleaning job for only twenty five dollars"

"We're only charging fifteen bucks, Brainiac" Faith rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, and your point is?" he smirked, just as Buffy wandered over, "Alright, pet?" he asked her, his smirk fading to a genuine smile. He was pleased to see her greet him with a similar expression. They'd been getting along a little better these past couple of weeks since she broke up with that ponce, Angel. She would speak to him a little in their Biology classes together, and say hi to him in the halls occasionally. Still, they were nowhere close to being as friendly as they had been before, and he knew her friendship with Faith and suffered similarly.

"I'm fine" the blonde nodded once, "We're doing pretty well today, although I admit we're not going to get to Nationals through a Car Wash alone" she sighed.

"Might get there faster if I got back to work" Faith said, shooting a 'you owe me one' look at her step-brother as she left him alone with Buffy.

"So you have a car for us to wash?" she asked, shifting awkwardly. It was a little strange to be standing in front of Spike in her state of undress, when she knew he liked her and she was having similar feelings for him too, despite her better judgement.

"Course, luv" he smiled, gesturing over his shoulder, "Be gentle with her though, my Dad would have a fit if she got so much as a scratch on her"

"We'll do a professional job, I promise" she told him, glancing back at the girls as they ran around getting sprayed by Xander who'd got his hands on one of the hoses again, "Even if it looks a little... unprofessional" she laughed lightly at her friends antics as she turned back and found Spike holding a piece of paper out to her.

"A cheque?" she frowned slightly a she reached to take it from him, "You don't have fifteen dollars in cash?"

"'S a bit more than fifteen, luv" he told her and her mouth dropped open as she read the number.

"Um, did you get a little over excited with your zeroes?" she checked and Spike shook his head.

"I screwed up big time with you, pet, I know that" he told her, looking genuinely sorry, "I've apologised, and there's little more I can do. I know you probably still don't like me very much, and I'm not trying to buy your affection, not a bit of it, but... well, when Faithie told me you were quite a way off your mark for your Nationals money, and my Dad's firm's always sponsoring a sports team or some such..."

"You got your Dad's company to sponser the squad, with this much cash?" she repeated what she thought he was telling her as she waved the cheque in her hand.

"'S right, pet" he nodded, hands shoved firmly in his pockets as he glanced down at his boots, "Though it wasn't s'much for your team as it was, well, for you, luv"

Tears welled in Buffy's eyes as she looked at Spike and wondered if she should believe what he was telling her. If it was for real, then maybe he was the sweet and wonderful guy she thought she'd met the day he walked into study hall and sat beside her. If this was another scam, well, she couldn't be sure, and it did bother her.

"Is this for real?" she checked, "I mean, you're not playing me again, because I swear Spike..."

"I wouldn't do that, Buffy, I swear" he promised her, "Bloody learnt my lesson the first time. I never should've done that to you. I can't make it right, but I know what cheerleading means to you, what this bloody National championship means, and I want to help, any way I can"

"Then thank you" she said softly, leaning in and kissing his cheek, "On behalf of the whole squad, thank you" she smiled before turning and walking away.

Spike watched her back as she disappeared amongst the crowd of other young people gathered around various cars. He could still feel her lips on his cheek, burning a hole there, or so it felt. Finally he felt like he was making some progress and for real this time, no tricks or scams. It felt good.

"What did you do?" Faith asked as she reappeared beside him, "Cos I could've sworn B just kissed you"

"Got Dad's company to cough up some cash for you pom-pom wavers to go and shake your thing in Florida, didn't I?" he smirked at his step-sister who looked amazed.

"What the hell, Spike?!" she said, looking angry as she whacked him in the arm.

"Ow, bitch!" he yelled, "What the bloody hell was that for?"

"For messing with Buffy's head again, jackass!" she told him angrily, "She's finally getting over what we did to her, I'm actually getting less frosty looks and the occasional short, generic conversation out of her. If you started screwing with her again..."

"I'm not screwing with her, Faithie" Spike said seriously, not as affronted by her words as he might've been, "I really like her, I told you before" he reminded her, "That is as true as the day I said it and I need to make her see it"

"You seriously tellin' me that whilst you were trying to get B to fall for you... you ended up falling for her?" she asked looking astonished, after all she'd never known Spike to want a girl around longer than it took to nail her. He'd said he liked Buffy and felt bad for playing her, but she never thought he seriously cared for her this much.

"Yeah, luv" he nodded, looking over at his blonde goddess, who was smiling brightly as she showed off the cheque he'd given her, "I fell for her, hook, line, and bloody sinker"

"Damn!" was all Faith could find to say to that.

_To Be Continued...  
_


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N : If you've seen Bring It On you'll know the movie ends at the National Cheerleading Championships, and since this fic is based on that movie, it also ends here...  
**_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 14

"This is crazy, man" Faith shook her head as the Sunnydale High cheerleading squad stepped off a bus into the bustling world of the National Cheerleading Championships in Daytona, Florida, "I never saw anything like this"

"I'm just so glad we made it" Buffy smiled widely as she looked around, walking with Faith, "We're so lucky that we did"

"I gotta say, B" the brunette shook her head, "And it ain't a subject I wanna bring up too much with you but... you know I joined this squad for all the wrong reasons" she sighed, "but right now, I'm kinda psyched about being one of the team" she admitted, almost blushing because she felt so stupid admitting it. She was Faith Lehane, the rebel, the tough girl, she wasn't supposed to get all girly and weird over team games and school spirit.

"It kinda sucks you in" Buffy agreed, "and for what it's worth, in spite of everything, I'm glad you joined the squad too" she admitted, "You brought something to the team, you helped so much with the new routines, I honestly don't know if we could've done it without you" she smiled at a girl she once considered almost a best friend, and now wished she still was.

"I'm only sorry I screwed up with you, man" Faith shook her head, "You were decent to me, I should've returned the favour"

"You should" Buffy nodded, "but you can't change the past. Right now we have a cheerleading competition to win, that's what's important" she reminded her, "So how about we concentrate on bringing it? And on being friends again?" she slipped in the last part quietly, but Faith still heard and grinned like the girly girl she usually tried not to show she was.

"Sounds good" she nodded, bursting with happiness inside at having her friend back like this, but not letting it show on the outside - she wouldn't be Faith if she did.

* * *

Nobody could concentrate on anything but their cheerleading as the hours ticked by and the Preliminary rounds of the competition began. Whilst some girls and boys concentrated so hard they looked like their heads might explode, others got overly nervous, causing them to throw up or mess up their routine, sending themselves or their team mates sprawling on the mats, some more badly injured than others.

Buffy wasn't too thrilled to turn around from prepping her team to find Cordelia all up in her face.

"Oh look, it's Little Miss Carbon Copy" the brunette laughed, "Y'know you looked so good at Regionals performing my teams cheer"

"We looked better than you, bitch" Faith shot at her, til Buffy gave her a look that said she should let the Captain handle this one.

"Shouldn't she be on a leash or something? Or maybe in a muzzle?" Cordy suggested with a nasty look.

"Cordelia, don't you have someplace else to be?" Buffy asked her, all sweetness and light, "Y'know like with your team, telling them to get themselves ready for the biggest beating of their life" she said, smirking at her predecessor who looked unphased.

"Buffy, sweetie" she shook her head, "Did you spray on a little too much Chanel for Losers today?"

"Oh, I'm not going to be the loser today, Cordelia" Buffy smiled still, "I wouldn't want to take that title away from you" she said, walking away, high-fiving with Faith as she passed her and kept on walking out of the other side of the tent. In all honesty, she was petrified of losing, especially to Cordelia after everything that had happened. Buffy had to prove she was the better Captain, that she had the better squad. If she didn't, she was going to look so stupid and in front of everyone!

"Next up, the Sunnydale High Razorbacks!" said the announcer and with a couple of deep calming breaths, Buffy smoothed down her skirt and headed back through the tent ready to lead her team out for their performance. Today was just the Preliminaries and she already felt terribly nauseous. Tomorrow the audience would be bigger, the stakes would be higher. Only one team could win, they were seriously going to have to bring it!

* * *

"Are you serious? Man, that's wicked-crazy!" Faith said into her cellphone as Buffy entered the dorm room where all the girls from her squad were hanging out. They'd sailed through the Preliminary round of the competition and were busy either celebrating or worrying about the Finals that would take place tomorrow. Faith it seemed was having an amusing conversation with someone who was on the other end of the phone, and Buffy was curious to know who her re-instated best friend was talking so animatedly too.

"I guess we'll see you tomorrow" she smiled, then laughed at something the other person had apparently said, "Yeah, right, man!" she chuckled, "See ya, bro" she said eventually ending the call and looking at Buffy. She didn't need to ask who had been on the line, Faith could read the question in her eyes, as well as see the little spark that had appeared at her use of the word 'bro'.

"Yeah, that was Spike" she confirmed, "I know he still ain't your favourite person right now, so I guess I should warn you" she said, "He's at a hotel a couple of miles away, managed to get in on a cancellation. He's gonna be at the competition tomorrow"

Buffy didn't know what to say to that, she barely knew what to think. She'd started to realise a while ago that her continued punishment of both Faith and Spike for what they'd done to her was only really bringing herself pain too. She'd allowed this girl to be her friend again, a desicion she was glad she's made especially today. Nerves had almost got the better of her once or twice but Faith was always there, telling her it'd all be okay, and of course it was. The Sunnydale Razorbacks had sailed through the Preliminaries, and had now all started worrying about tomorrow's Finals. With the added pressure of knowing she'd have to face Spike at some point too, Buffy felt like she was about to reach breaking point.

"You okay, B?" Faith checked and the blonde nodded, forcing a smile.

"Sure" she told her friend, "I have my best friend back, and we're in the Finals tomorrow" she grinned, "What more could I want?"

* * *

"Oh God" Willow was freaking out as she looked out from the large tent at the Hyperion Hornets performing a few feet away and the huge audience beyond. ESPN cameras swung around, taking in all the action and she swallowed hard to keep her nerves at bay.

"Will, breathe, honey" Xander urged her as she looked at him, "You're turning colours"  
"How do we do this every year?" she asked him, fighting to remember how she ever coped with being so worried and scared.

"We do it cos we know we're the best" he assured her with a smile, "We can't lose this, Will, not with this squad and our new routine"

"I wish I had your confidence man" Ben sighed, "Those Hornets are pretty good, and with Cordelia in charge..."

"We still can't lose" Faith chimed in as she appeared at his side, "You guys, we worked wicked-hard for this, and I know I ain't got much experience in cheerleading but I'd say B's the best Captain we could have" she said, making her friend smile, "So what d'ya say? We gonna kick butt or what?"

"Yeah!" the group around her cheered, just as the announcer thanked the Hyperion squad for their performance and announced that the Razorbacks were next.

"Hands in guys" Buffy told the squad who did as instructed, "Razorbacks on three. One, two, three..."

"Razorbacks!" the squad yelled before heading out to perform their routine.

Despite the over-excitement, nerves, and mixture of a million other feelings that Buffy was getting, she managed to focus her eyes on the audience just enough to spot her mother, ex-cheerleader Amy, and of course Spike.

A few seconds later the music began and the whole world fell away as the Sunnydale Razorbacks concentrated on performing their greatest routine to the best of their ability.

In the crowd, Spike felt so out of place, dressed in black jeans and T-shirt amongst hundreds and thousands in brightly coloured gear, waving banners and cheering like crazy people for those that did the same for sport. Down in the performance area, Spike's eyes flitted between his step-sister and the girl he knew by now he had fallen in love with as they danced, flipped, and shook what they had, performing as best they could in order to win.

When the music ended and the squad struck their final pose, Spike was compelled to join in the infectious clapping and cheering along with the rest of the crowd. He could've sworn that Buffy looked back at him and smiled, though from this distance it was difficult to tell if she was really singling him out as much as he thought she might be.

"I guess you weren't too awful" Cordy said cuttingly as her old squad took their place next to hers, and along with there other teams they waited for the results of the competition, "Maybe good enough for second" she smiled nastily.

"Screw you, Cordelia!" Harmony called down, from her place upon Ben's shoulders.

"Yeah, we so don't want your opinion, bitch!" Glory added from the ground.

Cordy just flipped her hair and turned away as Faith took the opportunity to flip off the ex-Captain of the Sunnydale Razorbacks.

The stadium fell silent soon after as the judge who would announce the winner stepped up to the mic. The girls clutched each other hands, the audience sat on the edge of their seats, as third place was announced and neither the Hornets or the Razorbacks were named.

"In second place, and this was a very close call" said the man at the microphone, "In second place" he repeated, "The Hyperion Hornets!"

Cordelia didn't looked as thrilled as the rest of her squad as they ran to collect their trophy and prize. They were so thrilled just to get this far in the competition, first was a dream, but second was beyond what they'd expected in reality anyway.

"And the winners of the National Cheerleading Championships 2006 are... the Sunnydale Razorbacks!"

Faith was sure both her ear-drums were simultaneously pierced by the joyful screams of her fellow cheerleaders, but she didn't mind one bit. She found a similarly girly sound had also escaped her own throat before she could stop it and she was soon being dragged to the front by Buffy to help collect the trophy and the ginormous cheque the team had won.

"We did it!" the blonde enthused bouncing around like Tigger on speed.

"We did" Faith agreed, "And I gotta say, B, not hatin' the rush it brings!" she laughed as she was suddenly spun around into a familiar pair of strong arms.

"Well done, luv" her brother smiled as he hugged her tight, "You were bloody brilliant"

"Thanks, man" she smiled too as she stepped out of his embrace and glanced back at Buffy, "Hey, you think you wanna meet the Captain who made our winning possible?" she smirked.

"Y'know I think we've already met" Spike smirked as he faced the blonde, giving his step-sister the chance to slip away into the crowd of her new friends, "Alright, luv?" he asked Buffy who nodded.

"Feels good to win" she admitted, "Look, Spike... I don't like how you treated me, but honestly, I..."

"'S alright, pet, I get it" he sighed, "You want me to piss off and leave you alone, and maybe I shouldn't've come here but..."

His sentence was cut short as Buffy put her arm around his neck and pulled him into a kiss he so wasn't expecting and yet quickly joined in with as soon as he realised what was happening. They were locked in each others arms joined at the lips for fully five minutes before either realised there was a world beyond each other once again.

"That mean I'm forgiven, does it?" he asked with a smirk, trying to get the breath back in his body.

"Oh yeah" Buffy breathed unevenly, "Although, this could just be the high from winning that's making me so forgiving" she teased.

"Well, maybe I should cheer you on to win more often then" Spike smirked, holding her close, "Go Team Go" he said with a sarcastic laugh, making Buffy giggle too as he leaned in closer and kissed her again. It didn't get better than this.

The End


End file.
